How To Deal With Adolescent Misbehavior In Cities And Other Communities?

 How To Deal With Adolescent Misbehavior In Cities And Other Communities?

 I was talking to someone today and they were concerned about reports of adolescents and young adults misbehaving in public, especially in cities where most of the reports come from.

Concerns included reasons why this happens and what could be done about it.

It turns out that there are a lot of reasons or causes that that can start or add to adolescent misbehavior in cities.  Most are well known but in today’s electronic society the weight of each one has changed from the past.

First of all poverty remains a key force in all of this.  We all know hungry children can be uncooperative and impatient.  To see what this means for our society all you need to do is multiply that hunger over nearly every day in the year and you will get an idea of the seriousness of the issue.  Any society that does not adequately provide a nutritious and reasonably priced, accessible food supply is bound for problems.  That has been true all through history. 

Issues that seemingly have nothing to do with violence in our cities and society turn out to have great impacts.  For example, as so-called Big Box stores began to grow they did everything that was predicted for them.  They not only directly competed with smaller stores and companies in many instances they destroyed them.  At this time, even though the Big Box stores promise cheaper prices that everyone can afford not everyone can get to the stores.  As a result of the destruction of local businesses and the distances necessary to take advantage of these ‘Fabulous, Low Prices’ something called ‘Food Deserts’ have been created.  These food deserts vary from areas that can only supply staples like bread, eggs and milk through gas stations or to areas that have absolutely no grocery stores at all.  The inhabitants need to travel very far to get food.  In that case poverty creates more poverty.

Another reason things get out of hand so widely across the nation and around the world is a general lack of opportunity.  There’s no chance for a young person to get a job working a few hours a week at a grocery or hardware store if those stores don’t exist.  Set aside the fact that the adults and families that could prosper through that activity also then have no stake in this economic mess.

                Poverty comes along with other negative social impacts.  Adolescents in poverty experience stress, violence, and exposure to crime at levels and number of incidents than is much higher than those not living in those conditions. It has become clear that they generally have limited, if any, access to quality education.  We’ve already mentioned the lack of employment opportunities.  Combined together these cause and heighten feelings of hopelessness and despair.

To worsen the outlook on this families with high levels of conflict or violence often pass this behavior on to the adolescents.  When the adolescents then begin to engage in misbehavior themselves it is difficult to break the cycle.  It is especially worrisome because when emersed in a chaotic lifestyle for many years that becomes the norm for those people living with the chaos. Adolescents caught in poverty  may have absentee or barely engaged parents.  Their extended families may be fragmented or non-existent.  When positive role models are not there it is human nature to take on what is presented especially when it is considered normal behavior.

Adolescents often engage in misbehavior, or any type of behavior, if friends or acquaintances  do it. In an a chaotic and insecure social situation conformity to any group becomes important in order fo the individual to secure a place in society and avoid complete isolation.  Simply put the children reach out and emulate what is there.  Without a way to compare behaviors or be offered alternatives then what is considered bad behavior may become the default action.

Mental health figures into all of this as well.  As we know adults in our society and around the world who experience mental health problems like depression, heightened anxiety or certain other mental illness may be more likely to behave badly.  On top of poverty, isolation and lack of opportunities mental health problems can certainly worsen the predicament adolescents are in and make it more than challenging to cope with the obvious stressors of their situation.

In that case, when all things are mounted against the individual it becomes a terrible predicament.  How can one expect someone in a situation to make what is generally considered to be a good decision when it is not clear what is good and what is bad when immersed in a community of chaos and poverty?

Yet another layer of difficulty is added when we consider substance abuse.  As mentioned access to nutritious and reasonably priced food is difficult in many communities across the United States and around the world – whether they are in cities or in small towns or the countryside.  In a bizarre circumstance, however, access to powerful, often addictive drugs, including alcohol, is freely available.  Not only that the prices are often reasonable if not sharply discounted in these communities.

It is important to note at this point that the sale of alcohol products like beer, wine and liquor in most States in the United States is controlled by what are called liquor boards.  Fees and taxes provide a hefty profit to these states.  A portion of those funds is supposed to be used against using the very things the organizations are selling but more often than not the money goes to advertising.  Reflecting on this for even a short time should be an eye opener for many people especially the politicians, bureaucrats and all those engaged in that marketing scheme.

Drugs are often brought into these communities not because the profit margin is high there but because police and other controlling influences like business, faith and scholarship are not strong, if there at all.  This fact brings along several other dangers with it to the youths and communities that drugs come to.  The drugs are not coming from a vacuum.  They are arriving from long established social behaviors and communities that have been engaged in that work not only for years or decades but for generations.  It is literally a negative foreign influence and when melded with domestic intergenerational crime and organizations if any person, especially a young person, gets mired in it then getting out of it is difficult if the person, at that point, can even imagine a world that is not encased in that society and community.

The use of alcohol or drugs is a problem.  There is no such thing as a recreational drug.  No human person escapes addiction or alcoholism if they use the substances regularly.  Adolescents, as a result of alcohol and drugs use do engage in misbehavior and sometimes criminal activity. Substance abuse impairs judgment.  Decision-making, in these circumstances has already taken an uncertain course when we consider the accumulated pressures of poverty, lack of opportunity, isolation, violence, poor education and the complex and sophisticated culture that comes along with alcohol and drugs.  The use of alcohol and drugs leads to dangerous and risky behaviors which include, but are not limited to violence, criminal behavior and unprotected sex.

Not all adolescents that grow up in these circumstances engage in misbehavior. These factors  increase the risk of misbehavior and generally ensure that the behavior will be witnessed or detailed descriptions of it will be made available. 

When anyone is concerned about an adolescent or adolescents exhibiting signs of misbehavior is is important to reach out for help.  As mentioned the very many ways that this sort of chaos ensues is in no small way based on very sophisticated sets of beliefs and behaviors, that, for all their violence and inherent illogic, are incredibly influential in changing, modifying and controlling the behavior of others. By reaching out for help then the resources that can be used to breathe life and vitality into a community can be brought to bear.

You are not alone.  Young people don’t have to be alone either.  This is a community problem we can all help to correct and prevent together.

For all of the problems mentioned here, violence misbehavior, alcohol and drug use, lack of education and an absence of economic opportunities (jobs) the best thing is prevention.  That is, to not allow these circumstances to occur or accumulate in the first place.

The second best, is that once discovered, early intervention be applied.

Following are a few examples of how to deal with the problem of misbehaving adolescents or adults in our society and communities –

Provide a hope and a sense of purpose for people.  Education and employment opportunities go far in this. 

Help to strengthen families.  Parenting education, support groups and community events provide connections for families to each other and to others.

Put forth positive role models and images.  For example – what is better for a working family?  Convincing their children than drinking beer in the hot sun and playing volleyball is a reasonable life goal?  How about that a nutritious diet and time spent with family, friends and the community is better?

Take the steps to not only address mental health problems in our society but to talk about them.  Not talking about mental health problems is tantamount to ignoring them.  Ignoring this serious issue is a problem in itself.

Substance abuse prevention will help.  The availability of powerful narcotics in every city, town and village in this country and in most places around the world serves no good purpose.  It does not provide criminals with a profitable way to make a living and keep them out of other business?  It enriches them and they use those riches to further corrupt what is around them.  They should not be provided unfettered access to children and youth nor any members of our communities and society.

Not even legal addictive substances should be provided even the least amount of official sanction or cooperation.

By working together we will ensure we have safer and healthier cities as well as thriving communities and a decent society for everyone.