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Journal of College Student Development 45.6 (2004) 704-706



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Culture, Peers and Delinquency Clifford R. O'Donnell, Editor Binghamton, NY: The Haworth Press, 2003, 92 pages, $39.95 (hardcover)

The goal of this text is to gain an understanding of delinquency and its development, or how one adolescent becomes a delinquent while another does not, in terms of the relationship between peer interaction and culture. [End Page 704]

The first article, Introduction:Juvenile Delinquency: Culture and Community, Person and Society, Theory and Research, by Roland G. Tharp, introduces the entire volume and begins the discussion of the community-peer model or the Cultural-Historical-Activity theory (CHAT). The goal of CHAT is to synthesize a variety of theoretical approaches to delinquency from every social science field. Its major focus is on the role of senior or more accomplished society members passing on traditions through participating in meaningful activities and conversation. Tharp also emphasizes the importance of a complete understanding of a culture when studying delinquency. Tharp's recommendation for intervention is to increase and improve opportunities for adult, especially parental, interaction with adolescents. This will create more opportunities for dialogue and shared activities for passing culture from one generation to another.

The Effects of Cultural Differences on Peer Group Relationships, by Joie Acosta, is the title of the second article. Acosta's research is based on a study involving 101 high school students. They ranged from ninth to twelfth grade and were divided into four groups: East Asian (Japanese, Chinese and Korean), South-east Asian (Filipino, Thai and Vietnamese), Polynesian/Micronesian and Caucasian. Acosta found several themes consistent through the four groups of students. One theme was that all groups place a greater dependence and trust in their friends than their families or traditional cultures, which therefore do not serve to fend off the negative effects of peer group involvement. Lack of parental or other adult supervision was another strong predictor in the development of youth culture. Acosta recommends intervention strategies that address peer groups in a way that helps them create positive meaning-making activities.

The third article is by Yuko Yamamiya and is titled Juvenile Delinquency in Japan. Yamamiya traces changes in Japanese culture as the context for discussing the growing problem of Japanese delinquency. Traditional Japanese culture emphasizes homogeneity, harmony, submission and loyalty. There are strict rules of engagement and social status. Inclusion is of utmost importance, while exclusion is punishment. Since the 1970s, Japan, an already densely populated country, has become increasingly urban. Families are smaller, and the adolescent population per capita is the lowest in the world. Education increasingly is important and is used as a measuring stick for social status. This emphasis places tremendous pressure on the children. More and more families must exist on two incomes, which results in less interaction with parents and more time with peers. Child abuse and alcoholism are also increasingly common.

Yamamiya has seen that if a child is not a good student or is from a dysfunctional family, he or she may feel excluded from the greater Japanese culture and will then seek another community to join. Though their delinquent behavior might suggest otherwise, these gangs often incorporate traditional Japanese values in their organizations. Harmony, loyalty and submission to the gang leader are requirements for inclusion and acceptance. This might require an individual to commit crimes, bully a peer or even submit to the bullying of an older gang member. Yamamiya's conclusion is that adolescent delinquency is a symptom of greater problems in Japan's culture and that any intervention model should begin with addressing the larger Japanese society.

Vietnamese Youth Gangs in Honolulu, by Nghi Dong Thai, is the fourth article. Thai's [End Page 705] study consisted of 26 ethnographic interviews with a variety of community representatives ranging from police officers to school staff to Vietnamese youth and adults. She found that youth who come from dysfunctional families and have delinquent friends are more likely to engage in delinquent behavior than if they do not have delinquent friends. Thai suggests disciplinary actions that do not...

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