CHAPTER 10: THE PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF YOUTH
MISBEHAVIOUR IN SA
Study Guide: Describe the current crime prevention measures utilized to curb youth
misbehavior in South Africa.
-There are three levels of crime prevention:
1. Primary Prevention: Prevent youth misbehaviour before it occurs.
2. Secondary prevention: Early indication of youths who are at risk, and the intervention
to prevent this.
3. Tertiary prevention: Prevention of recidivism of youth offenders and deals with the
treatment of youths who have already committed crimes.
1. PRIMARY PREVENTION:
-Primary prevention is proactive and relates to the steps that are taken to prevent youth
misbehaviour and crime before they occur.
-One of the most important measures for achieving this is to provide opportunities to meet the
basic needs of the young (e.g. housing, education and health services).
1.1. The Role of The Family as Primary Socializing Agent:
-Parents are the most important socializing agents in a child’s life, thus everything that happens
in the family system has a considerable influence on the future of the child.
-Primary prevention remains the primary responsibility of the parents.
-Fractured families, single-parent families and child-headed families are very common in SA and
stand in contrast to the ideal image of “the family”.
-High divorce and remarriage rates often result in female-headed single-parent families and/ or
step or blended families.
-Because of economic and/or social factors, these families are often unable to function as
adequate support systems.
-Primary socialization is thus shared to a large extent with other social institutions such
as schools.
-Emotional poverty or the lack of love and affection are often the result.
-When the family becomes dysfunctional and discordant, children often leave the home to
spend more time on the streets which draws them to criminal associations.
, -Primary prevention projects aimed at improving the ability of families to rear and support
children should be a priority.
-In cases where both parents work outside the home, adequate alternative supervision and
care should be ensured, and parents should be encouraged to use infant and child day-care
facilities or afterschool care, for example.
-Empowering parents by instructing them on aspects such as basic care of infants, child
development, the disciplinary needs of children and conflict resolution would therefore seem to
be one of the most basic preventative measures that can be implemented to prevent youth
misbehaviour.
-Roelofse states that parenting should be aimed at instructing parents on the demands and
responsibilities associated with raising children.
-In addition, emphasis should be placed on the importance of effective financial planning as
well as aspects such as conflict resolution and how to treat juveniles who are in the
puberty phase.
-Children must also be taught moral, spiritual and civic values, as a decline in these can
contribute to misbehaviour.
-According to Liese and Bezuidenhout, an effective proactive strategy for preventing youth
crime would be to offer programmes aimed at reinforcing and internalizing positive individual
traits such as discipline, trustworthiness, self-respect, responsibility and good citizenship, as
well as providing life skills training.
-Youth-at-risk programmes, such as the life skills camps offered by Conquest for Life, are aimed
at reinforcing and internalizing positive individual traits.
1.2. The Role of Mentors in The Prevention of Youth Misbehaviour:
-As peer group influences are also strongly related to misbehaviour, there are mentorship
programmes aimed to encourage friendships with more conventional peers.
-According to Liese and Bezuidenhout, a positive relationship with an adult, either within or
outside the immediate family (e.g. a mentor), is often a major contributing factor in preventing
the possibility of illegal behaviour of troubled children.
-Children need to acquire resilience factors, and this can often be achieved by the assistance of
a mentor who assists the child in dire situations, shows them that they are loved and wanted,
and that they are trusted by the adult mentor.
MISBEHAVIOUR IN SA
Study Guide: Describe the current crime prevention measures utilized to curb youth
misbehavior in South Africa.
-There are three levels of crime prevention:
1. Primary Prevention: Prevent youth misbehaviour before it occurs.
2. Secondary prevention: Early indication of youths who are at risk, and the intervention
to prevent this.
3. Tertiary prevention: Prevention of recidivism of youth offenders and deals with the
treatment of youths who have already committed crimes.
1. PRIMARY PREVENTION:
-Primary prevention is proactive and relates to the steps that are taken to prevent youth
misbehaviour and crime before they occur.
-One of the most important measures for achieving this is to provide opportunities to meet the
basic needs of the young (e.g. housing, education and health services).
1.1. The Role of The Family as Primary Socializing Agent:
-Parents are the most important socializing agents in a child’s life, thus everything that happens
in the family system has a considerable influence on the future of the child.
-Primary prevention remains the primary responsibility of the parents.
-Fractured families, single-parent families and child-headed families are very common in SA and
stand in contrast to the ideal image of “the family”.
-High divorce and remarriage rates often result in female-headed single-parent families and/ or
step or blended families.
-Because of economic and/or social factors, these families are often unable to function as
adequate support systems.
-Primary socialization is thus shared to a large extent with other social institutions such
as schools.
-Emotional poverty or the lack of love and affection are often the result.
-When the family becomes dysfunctional and discordant, children often leave the home to
spend more time on the streets which draws them to criminal associations.
, -Primary prevention projects aimed at improving the ability of families to rear and support
children should be a priority.
-In cases where both parents work outside the home, adequate alternative supervision and
care should be ensured, and parents should be encouraged to use infant and child day-care
facilities or afterschool care, for example.
-Empowering parents by instructing them on aspects such as basic care of infants, child
development, the disciplinary needs of children and conflict resolution would therefore seem to
be one of the most basic preventative measures that can be implemented to prevent youth
misbehaviour.
-Roelofse states that parenting should be aimed at instructing parents on the demands and
responsibilities associated with raising children.
-In addition, emphasis should be placed on the importance of effective financial planning as
well as aspects such as conflict resolution and how to treat juveniles who are in the
puberty phase.
-Children must also be taught moral, spiritual and civic values, as a decline in these can
contribute to misbehaviour.
-According to Liese and Bezuidenhout, an effective proactive strategy for preventing youth
crime would be to offer programmes aimed at reinforcing and internalizing positive individual
traits such as discipline, trustworthiness, self-respect, responsibility and good citizenship, as
well as providing life skills training.
-Youth-at-risk programmes, such as the life skills camps offered by Conquest for Life, are aimed
at reinforcing and internalizing positive individual traits.
1.2. The Role of Mentors in The Prevention of Youth Misbehaviour:
-As peer group influences are also strongly related to misbehaviour, there are mentorship
programmes aimed to encourage friendships with more conventional peers.
-According to Liese and Bezuidenhout, a positive relationship with an adult, either within or
outside the immediate family (e.g. a mentor), is often a major contributing factor in preventing
the possibility of illegal behaviour of troubled children.
-Children need to acquire resilience factors, and this can often be achieved by the assistance of
a mentor who assists the child in dire situations, shows them that they are loved and wanted,
and that they are trusted by the adult mentor.
