Superpredators

The Concept of Superpredators

Juveniles of the late 20th and early 21st centuries are described as being better educated and confident than any previous generation. Yet, the label “superpredators” has been attached to some of these youth; they are described as being materialistic, egoistic, apathetic, irresponsible, and amoral, and ultimately are stereotyped as being a generation that is dangerous and unconscionable. Scholars postulate that the decadent behavior of these juveniles results from their exposure to negative events (e.g., poverty, graphic violence, broken families, and sexual abuse) that predict the likelihood of engaging in crime and delinquency. For example, the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) indicated in 2004 that approximately 18% of all children in the United States lived in poverty. After hitting a low of 12.1 million children in 2000, more than 1.4 million children have been added to die poverty rolls, becoming members of this country's “new poor.” After a decade of decline, the NCCP's September 2007 report indicated that die proportion of children living in low-income families is increasing again, a trend that began in 2000. In 2006, die overall child poverty rate was 17%; the rate was 33% for African Americans and 27% for Hispanics. Children who grow up in poverty experience significant hardships tliat can have lasting effects well into adulthood and can contribute to joblessness and incarceration.

Juveniles are bombarded with graphic violence in the media. For example, approximately 98% of all households in the United States have a television. These households operate their televisions on an average of 28 hours per week, exposing teenagers to approximately 23 hours per week and younger youth to approximately 2 to 11 hours per week. As a result, children are exposed to approximately 8,000 murders and 100,000 other acts of violence on television by the time they have completed elementary school. According to the American Psychiatric Association, these figures double by the age of 18.

Juveniles who have been victims of sexual abuse are more likely to engage in delinquent behavior. Girls are more likely to be victimized by family members and often respond by running away from home, which leads to street-level crimes, such as prostitution, theft, and selling drugs, as well as further abuse and exploitation of others.

Juveniles born to single-parent families are subjected to more strain, partly because of limited financial support, a lack of parental supervision, and a negative school experience. Among African American families, this phenomenon is exacerbated by the high rate of male incarceration. In the United States, African Americans comprise 12% of the population; yet, 1 in 13 of all adult African American males are incarcerated in a prison or jail. In fact, an African American boy has a 32% chance of being incarcerated at some point in his life, compared to a 17% chance for Hispanics and a 6% chance for Whites. For African American women, the incarceration rate is not as high as it is [Page 786]for African American men, but it is increasing more rapidly; the growth trend is alarming by doubling the rate for men; the incarceration rate for African American women grew 267% between 1985 and 2000 in federal and state prisons.

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