Adolescent “mimesis”: from vulnerability to protection.

Abstract

There is a great diversity of studies and research work on human and social sciences showing how conduct problems involving the young are associated with complex social consequences.
The frequency and dissemination of social discourses confirm an ever-growing number of offences practised by the young, the emergence of which is classified as Juvenile Delinquency.
The following objectives were defined: to debate some of the questions underlying the core of such a phenomenon, in the light of sociological and psychological interpretations, and to investigate the scientific literature published in periodicals indexed by the Medline and Lilacs databases between 1990 and 2004 on the subject of Juvenile Delinquency. In the context of this debate, the scientific literature analysed brought out four thematic focuses: Enigmatic adolescence; Sociological Analysis; Psychological Analysis; from vulnerability to protection.
To include the aforementioned fact in the wide range of adolescence-related questions will be part of our goal, referring to some arguments concerned with its aetiology, prevention and treatment. Proposals to further investigation will also be advanced.


IFE PsychologIA Vol. 15 (2) 2007: pp. 236-245