Strayer University Week 2 Juvenile Delinquency and Social Control Discussion

Question Description

Evaluate your colleagues problem statements,judging their clarity and strength: To what extent is the problemsignificant enough to warrant study? What other components or issuesmight be added to the problem statement? What other feedback can youprovide that will strengthen the statement? Explain and justify yourdecisions and feedback. Support or challenge your colleagues choices ofkey words. $5 Post

Dissertation Topic

Theprojected topic of study for the dissertation is what impact doesparticipation in interscholastic sports during high school have onjuvenile delinquency in rural communities?

Problem Statement

TravisHirschi originally discussed interscholastic sports as part of histenet of involvement within social control theory (1969). As part ofthis theory and this specific tenet, Hirschi discussed that juvenileswho are involved in a positive activity will be less likely to engage indelinquent behaviors (Hirschi, 1969). Hirschi authored Causes of Delinquencyin 1969 which was a review of hypothesis regarding social controltheory in which he provided empirical data from self-report surveys ofdelinquency (Costello & Laub, 2020). Since 1969, further researchhas been conducted specifically to interscholastic sports involvementcorrelating with involvement in delinquent behaviors and the resultscontinue to be inconclusive or lack significant association (Spruit etal, 2015). In a study completed by Spruit and colleagues, 132,366participants were studied with multiple different variables. It wasfound through this study that when comparing involvement ininterscholastic sports and rates of engagement in juvenile delinquency, asignificant association could not be noted (Spruit et al, 2015).

Inanother study completed solely by Spruit, research showed a positiverelationship between interscholastic sports involvement and thedevelopment of positive youth behavior, however, continued to beinconclusive regarding prevention of juvenile delinquency (Spruit,2017). Spruit discusses the continued need for further research toidentify what effect is present on the correlation between theinvolvement in interscholastic sports and the rate of engagement indelinquency. Spruit also notes the importance of the continued studybased on the financial impact of delinquent behavior and the goal ofrehabilitation of youth (Spruit, 2017).

Theresearch that will be conducted through this dissertation will attemptto find a stronger significance between a youths involvement in highschool interscholastic sports and his or her involvement in delinquentbehaviors. Delinquent behaviors for the sake of this study and theintent of exclusivity and exhaustivity will include both criminal actsas well as status offenses.

Asa resident of Bradford County, Pennsylvania which is surrounded byTioga County, Pennsylvania to the West, Sullivan County to the South andSusquehanna County to the East, the rural sense of living is prominent.For context, Bradford County, Pennsylvania is comprised of 60,323people in 1,161 square miles, Tioga of 40,591 people in 1,133 squaremiles, Sullivan of 6,066 people in 449 square miles, and Susquehanna40,328 people in 823 miles (Bureau). This data translates into the highschools within these counties and how youth are impacted. For example,and the desire behind his study, high schools within these counties haveto combine with one another in order to have enough students toparticipate in interscholastic sports of any kind. The study, guided bythe current theories on delinquency, will aim to provide information tothese rural communities about the benefits of involvement ininterscholastic sports should a significant relationship be identified.

Theresearch will be conducted through the qualitative methodology. Asurvey will be produced and provided through a tool that will allow forthe anonymity of the respondent. This survey will be a self-reportsurvey of prior delinquent behaviors of the respondent. Individuals willbe required to be 18 years of age or older to complete the survey. Thesurvey will be provided to Mansfield University Students. Once thesurvey has been completed, the data will be extracted and analyzed.

Use of Resources

The use of resources provided by Walden for the Capstone project willbe endlessly helpful. These resources will assist me in guiding myliterature review, development of each section of the dissertation aswell as provide insight into what is required to complete. For example,the problem statement is more than simply stating the problem of why theresearch is being conducted. This information was able to be found inthe guides on what needs to be included, a checklist almost. Further,information is provided on the development of my committee. This isimportant to understand because having a committee who is right for yourdissertation will provide further success.

References

Bureau, U. (n.d.). Census.gov. Retrieved December 08, 2020, from https://www.census.gov/

Costello, B.,& Laub, J. (2020, January). Social Control Theory: The Legacy ofTravis Hirschi’s Causes of Delinquency. Retrieved December 08, 2020,from https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-criminol-011419-041527

Hirschi, T. (1969). Causes of delinquency. Berkley, CA: University of California Press.

Spruit, A. (2017). Keeping youth in play: The effects of sports-based interventions in the prevention of juvenile delinquency.

Spruit, A.,Van Vug, E., Van der Put, C., Van der Stouwe1, T. & Jan Stams, G.(2015). Sports Participation and Juvenile Delinquency: A Meta-AnalyticReview. J Youth Adolescence, 45, 655671. DOI 10.1007/s10964-015-0389-7

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