Children and Crime

Book excerpt: Children and Crime offers a multidisciplinary and research-based approach to the study of child maltreatment and juvenile delinquency. Connie M. Tang first examines children as victims of maltreatment, exploring how developmental trauma and societal factors influence children’s behavior and psyche. Topics covered include child neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and psychological abuse. Later chapters address how children come into conflict with the law and discuss gang membership and substance abuse. Engaging, real-life case studies illustrate the intersectionality of race, gender, and crime, as well as the role of Child Protective Services and juvenile courts. In particular, Tang examines how abuse and neglect can later play a role in a child’s delinquency. Children and Crime provides an innovative and accessible text for psychology, social work, and criminal justice courses in child abuse, neglect, and delinquency.