Adherence to norms and respect for the police institution in judicialised and non-judicialised adolescents from socially vulnerable communities in Brazil

• In Event: Legitimacy of authority figures and legal socialization in adolescents across different sociocultural contexts

Abstract

In Marc Leblanc's Theory of Social and Personal Regulation of Social Conduct in Adolescence, the concept of internal constraint refers to the adherence to conduct norms promulgated by social institutions to such an extent that the individual no longer perceives them as acquired through processes of coercion/socialization. In this theory, adherence to norms during adolescence is moderated by "the use of cognitive techniques to neutralize thoughts/feelings contradictory to deviant behavior," by "perception of the risk of sanction," and, primarily, by "respect for authority figures," operationalized in a single measure relative to "respect for the Police institution." These components of normative regulation refer to perceptions and beliefs that are built from the experiences of children/adolescents in interactions/relationships with authority figures. In Brazil, considering that the experiences of socially vulnerable segments with the police tend to be, on the whole, more negative than positive, due to contacts often marked by abuse of power, police brutality, and violations of human rights, it was questioned whether there would be significant differences between a group of adjudicated adolescents - in conflict with the law - and a control group, all from communities belonging to vulnerable social strata, regarding "respect for the police" and "adherence to norms." In addition to official delinquency, self-reported delinquency was also studied in the groups, seeking to understand how normative regulation, despite similar community experiences, is an important mechanism in the context of peripheral communities such as those existing in Brazil. The main results and discussion will be presented, considering important elements for the prevention of juvenile delinquency in contexts of social vulnerability.

Authors

• Marina Rezende Bazon, University of São Paulo

• Fabio Meirelles Alves, GEPDIP/USP