African American Males and the Criminal Justice System

Paper Summary:

This paper takes an in-depth look at the rise in crime amongst the African-American male population and the variety of social problems, such as a history of abuse and psychological disorders, that may be fuelling this criminal behaviour. This paper also takes a look at the fact that many African-American males are being released from prison with drug addictions that did not exist prior to their incarceration.

Contents
Introduction/Statement Problem
Significance of Problem
Purpose Of Proposed Study
Preliminary Literature Review
Studies Supporting African American Male Criminal Activity
Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Aggressive Behavior
The Link Between Victimization and Psychopathology
Summary of Preliminary Research
Limitations
Sample Size
Delimitations
Implications

From the Paper:

"There is however much evidence pointing to affective disorders and substance abuse problems within the African American male population, which may contribute to drug dependence and criminal activity (Widom & White, 1997; Wagner, Loyd & Gil, 2002; Zeitlin, 1999; Gil, et. al, 2004). Still other evidence points to drug use early in adolescence as contributing to criminal behavior, and that early drug use may be associated with other domestic, violence or abuse problems and mental health disorders even in youth (Vega & Gil, 1998; Turner & Lloyd, 1995; Tubman, Langer & Calderon, 2001).
Other evidence suggests patterns of dependence symptoms and alcohol abuse may be linked with depressive or other disorders in adolescents, which may progress into adulthood leading to criminal activity (Martin, Kaczynski, Maisto & Bukstein, 1995; Kessler, et. al, 1996; Kilpatrick, et. al, 2000)."

More papers on African American Males and the Criminal Justice System :

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• Research Paper # 93716 : "African-American Males"

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