An Investigation of the Causes of Delinquency and Violence in Secondary Schools in St. Lucia

• In Event: The Role of Social Bonds and Self Esteem in Explaining Juvenile Delinquency and Educational Attainment

Abstract

This study investigated the causes of delinquency and violence in secondary schools in St Lucia, whether males who attend secondary school in St Lucia were more delinquent and violent than females and the mediating role of specific variables on the relationship between the independent and dependent variables.
The study utilized the quantitative method. The findings established that peer relationship, gender, self-esteem, self-control, drug and alcohol abuse and parental practice cause delinquency and violence in secondary schools in St Lucia. It postulated that: (i) drug and alcohol abuse, the use of drugs in the past year and earlier in one’s lifetime, deviant peers and low self-esteem mediate the effect of parental practice on delinquency and violence; (ii) lifetime use of drugs, and use of drugs in the past year mediate the effect of self-esteem on delinquency and violence. Additionally, it confirmed that males who attend secondary schools tend to be more delinquent and violent than females.

Keywords: delinquency, violence, secondary school, St Lucia.

Author

• Leonard Johnny