Abstract
This article examines the treatment of young offenders in an inner-city area of contemporary Britain. The effect of harsher legislation on the practices adopted by agencies and practitioners is highlighted. The analysis relates to the symbolic interactionist tradition, and on the basis of the material collected, convergencies and discrepancies with such theoretical tradition are pinpointed. In a brief conclusion, while the case under investigation is said to reflect the growing punitiveness exacted on youth in general, it is also said to signal the particular British obsession with punishing children.
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