INTRODUCTION
Juvenile Delinquency was defined by Coleman in 1981 as the ‘behaviour of youth, aged less than 18 years, which is not acceptable to society and is generally regarded as calling for some kind of admonishment, punishment or corrective actions.’[1]Thus, any crime committed by a juvenile is a delinquent act, i.e., it is not in conformity with society or societal norms. Young minds are often unable to comprehend the thin line between the virtual world and real life. Juveniles tend to mimic the aggressive activity portrayed in the media, video games, and television programs, etc.[2]
It is a well-understood and widely accepted fact that today’s youth prefer Instagram and Snapchat for relaxation over yoga or meditation. Social Media has emerged as an important factor impacting the lives of adolescents. As teenagers and young minds delve more and more into the internet, concerns revolving around the potential impact of social media on the rise of their deviant behaviour have gained importance. The over use of social media has given rise to questions about its potential relationship with social deviance and delinquency in juveniles.
How does social media impact the young minds? How does it promote an aggressive nature, a rebellious attitude or an antisocial mindset? How does this mindset lead to delinquent acts? Establishing a link between social media and delinquency is not a tricky task, as we can see its influences out in the street at any given time. However, the issue arises when this turns into a criminal activity if committed by an adult or a delinquent act if committed by a juvenile.
SOCIAL DEVIANCE: IN THE ERA OF THE INTERNET
According to sociologist William Graham Sumner, deviance is a violation of established contextual, cultural, or social norms, whether folkways, mores, or codified law. He has proposed these categories of norms based on the severity of deviation from “right” conduct.[3]Folkways are everyday practices we perform to socialise; Mores are comparatively more serious norms, for example, Exogamy. Laws are the most serious form of social norms because their violation leads to penalisation and punishment. People who deviate from mores are seen as rude, whereas people who deviate from Mores face societal expulsion.
There are various theories as to why one may portray deviant behaviour. These are based on socio-psychological studies of criminals or deviants. For instance, if children are neglected by their parents and are not adequately supervised, then they are at the most significant risk of committing some crime or delinquency, and it appears to be that the ones who are ignored by society and family are the ones who become delinquents.[4]The common denominator between deviants is that they are the people who do not conform to mainstream society and, hence, are more likely to be socially deviant. In a survey by SK Pushppasri[5], it was observed that peer pressure, social status, parental neglect, and poor education are the most common causes of deviance in today’s world, with Parental Neglect being the highest occurrence.
In the era of the internet, social deviance is an easy way out for antisocial people. If we take the above example of neglected children- if these children are provided with unauthorised internet access, they tend to show a more rebellious attitude. This is because young minds are easy to influence, and a mind becomes deviant when it is unable to achieve its goals. Owing to such factors, the child may start to portray deviant behaviour when he is not receiving things he wants or requires.
JUVENILE DELINQUENCY: CAN IT STEM FROM THE INTERNET?
Offences by a minor can be categorised into two types[6]–
- Status Offences- These are offences that are not crimes if committed by an adult. For example, it is smoking or drinking as a minor.
- Delinquent acts- These offences would be categorised as a crime if they were committed by an adult, as these are violations of the law—for example, Rape, Murder, Assault, etc.
With the availability of the internet, juveniles tend to indulge themselves in such activities after witnessing similar things being committed either by another juvenile across the world or simply by an adult. For example, a juvenile could come across a video of a bratty child fighting with his parents for a video game set. This could also influence him to throw a similar tantrum in front of his parents. However, this is a mere act of deviance, rebellion and aggression. Nevertheless, it must be noted that deviant kids are more likely to develop a criminal mind. The reason is the “Labelling[7]” phenomenon. This theory suggests that if a person is labelled as a bad person, then the likeliness of that person to escape that sort of behaviour is very low, or they could indulge in such “bad” acts more after being labelled as such.
The availability of the internet to juveniles has led to a significant rise in deviant behaviour being portrayed by them. Juveniles’ violent behaviour can be characterised by observational learning or modelling, which primarily means that an individual may acquire ways of doing something by watching others.[8] Therefore, if a youth witnesses delinquent acts on the internet, watches criminal shows, or plays violent games, then the chances of him turning to delinquent acts or even criminal behaviour in the future are higher.
RECENT EXAMPLES OF JUVENILE DELINQUENCY IN INDIA
- An eight-year-old girl was allegedly gang raped by five minor boys after watching pornography on their mobile phones.[9]
- Four hackers, including two juveniles, have been arrested by the Special Task Force of the UP police for hacking the Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation website and booking free online tickets, compromising the payment gateway process.[10]
- A 16-year-old queer Instagram influencer from Ujjain is said to have ended his life due to online trolling.[11]
It has been seen that most of the offences that juveniles indulge in are sexual offences or cyberbullying. These are majorly due to the influence of the internet and social media. Social media shapes the minds of an average teenager in this digital world. Unattended internet access can lead to deviant behaviour and eventual delinquency or crimes being committed by juveniles.
CONCLUSION
To conclude, it can be stated that delinquent behaviour stems from the social, familial, and economic situations of a juvenile. To top this, unrestricted and unsupervised access to the internet can impact young minds significantly and negatively, much more so. In recent times, such cases have risen significantly. On one hand, the government needs to step in to regulate the types of content available online. On the other hand, parents must be aware of the content that their children access through their mobile phones. Providing a healthy and positive environment for adolescents is important as it is the time in their lives that shapes their attitudes and mindset. Most criminals develop a criminal mindset at a young age. Thus, extra affection and attention must be provided to them during this age to avoid any deviant, delinquent or criminal behaviour.
Author(s) Name: Suhani Singh (Symbiosis Law School NOIDA (Symbiosis International University)
References:
[1]Abhilasha Belwal and Ashish Belwal, ‘Juvenile Delinquency In India’[2016] Bharati Law Review<https://docs.manupatra.in/newsline/articles/Upload/B4443CDC-5144-4816-946C-7C5EBE5122FC.pdf>Accessed on 25th January
[2]Yana Gupta and Ayush Mangal, ‘Social Media – A Breeding Ground for Juvenile Offenders’ (Word Press, August 10,2021)<https://criminallawstudiesnluj.wordpress.com/2021/08/10/social-media-a-breeding-ground-for-juvenile-offenders/> Accessed 25th January 2024
[3] Sage Publications Ltd. ‘Introduction to the Study of Deviant Behaviour’ <https://uk.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-assets/109955_book_item_109955.pdf> Accessed on 24th January 2024
[4]S. K. Pushppasri, ‘Psycho-Social Impact of Family and Society on Juvenile Delinquents’ (2023) 3 Indian J Integrated Rsch L 1
[5]S. K. Pushppasri, ‘Psycho-Social Impact of Family and Society on Juvenile Delinquents’ (2023) 3 Indian J Integrated Rsch L 1
[6]Abhilasha Belwal and Ashish Belwal, ‘Juvenile Delinquency In India’ [2016] BLR<https://docs.manupatra.in/newsline/articles/Upload/B4443CDC-5144-4816-946C-7C5EBE5122FC.pdf>Accessed on 24th January 2024
[7]EGyanKosh, ‘Unit 31 Social Deviance’ <https://egyankosh.ac.in/bitstream/123456789/18827/1/Unit-31.pdf> Accessed on 24th January 2024
[8]Yana Gupta and Ayush Mangal, ‘Social Media – A Breeding Ground for Juvenile Offenders’ (Word Press, August 10,2021) <https://criminallawstudiesnluj.wordpress.com/2021/08/10/social-media-a-breeding-ground-for-juvenile-offenders/> Accessed 24th January 2024
[9]K Sanjay Kumar, ‘Cyber Juvenile Delinquencies:Side effects of Internet and Social Networking’ (OnManorama, 24th Aug 2018)<https://www.onmanorama.com/news/straight-talk/2018/08/04/cyber-juvenile-delinquencies.html> Accessed on 24th January 2024
[10]Neelanshu Shukla, ‘UP STF arrests 4 for hacking UPSRTC website, booking free tickets’ India Today(New Delhi, 4th Aug 2018)
[11]Medha Chawla and Rishabh Sharma, ‘Queer, teen and coming out on social media? What it takes to survive the trolls’ India Today (New Delhi,11th December 2023)
