Delinquent Behavior Among Youthful Offenders. A Study On Community Service Order Program, Malaysia

Abstract

The increase in cases of delinquent behavior of youths in Malaysia is an issue that should be given serious attention. Although statistics of the Department of Social Welfare showed the rate of decline in the case of youthful offenders from 2013 to 2018, but the rate of decline is very slow and sometimes fluctuate which requires action policies and effective programs to address the issue affirmatively. Apart from looking at the actions and initiatives that should be taken by the government and the authorities in dealing with this issue, the identification of the main factors of the problem of an offence is also not to be underestimated. This article examines the main factors of the offences among youthful offenders in the Community Service Order Program under the Department of Social Welfare. On the other part, this paper also investigates the relationship between the delinquent behavior and the participation of respondents in the National Service Training Programme (PLKN). A total of 79 trainees under Community Service Order participated in this study. The findings show that the main factor on the tendency of misconduct is lack of parental control and peer influence. Majority of the offenders also never attended the PLKN which can be associated with lack of awareness on the implication of delinquent behavior. The adoption of moral values in the family and educational institutions and the community are the main recommendations addressed to ensure youths are not involved in this issue.