Deck 5: The Troubling and Troubled World of Youth

Question 1

Most adolescents who use marijuana use it regularly.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

The concept of "youth" has a diversity of definitions, depending upon the context in question.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Youth ages 12-17 are more likely to be victims of crime than adults are.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

In Canada, more boys than girls are smokers.

Question 5

In Columbia, where there are high levels of drug use and crime in society, effective parenting styles reduce the likelihood that youth will use marijuana or become involved in crime.

Question 6

According to Jankowski's (1991) ethnographic research on gangs, some youth join gangs as a way to tell society, "Take your McJobs and shove it!"

Question 7

Drug use among youth was lower in 2007 than in 1979.

Question 8

Canadian youth are more likely to use marijuana than European youth living in countries with more lenient marijuana laws.

Question 9

Both troubled and troubling youth are perceived as threats, or at least potential threats, to society.

Question 10

Fewer than half of street gang members are under the age of 18.

Question 11

Troubled youth are primarily perceived as threats to themselves.

Question 12

In the mid-20th century, researchers found that the most important thing to high school girls was popularity.

Question 13

In newspapers, race is linked to gangs only when the race is non-Caucasian.

Question 14

Binge drinking is more prevalent among university athletes than among the general university population.

Question 15

Youth who smoke are more likely to use other drugs.

Question 16

Public concerns about youth crime are significantly different today than they were 100 years ago.

Question 17

In Canada, youth crime rates were lower in 2006 than in 1991.

Question 18

In the mid-20th century, researchers found that the most important thing to high school boys was popularity.

Question 19

Research that explores the varying interests and motivations of youth gang members emerges from an interactionist rather than a critical perspective.

Question 20

Critics of the concept of "at risk youth" claim that virtually all youth can be included in the category "at risk".

Question 21

According to data from the Canadian version of the International Youth Survey, which of the following factors is associated with youth violent crime, but not youth property crime?

A) skipping school
B) having been discriminated against on the basis of language, race, or religion
C) having been stolen from
D) perceiving the school environment as unsafe
E) peer acceptance of illegal acts

Question 22

For which of the following types of crime are people under the age of 18 the primary offenders?

A) homicide
B) motor vehicle theft
C) break and enter
D) assault
E) people under the age of 18 are not the primary offenders for any type of crime

Question 23

Newspapers the gang problem, in that stories about gangs frequently include references to racial or ethnic groups.

A) stigmatize
B) factualize
C) normalize
D) racialize
E) deviantize

Question 24

Which of the following is not one of the elements of a moral panic?

A) volatility
B) disproportionality
C) heightened concern
D) hostility directed at society by the offending group
E) consensus regarding the level of perceived threat

Question 25

How is youth crime portrayed in the media?

A) it is overrepresented
B) it is presented as a new problem for society
C) it is linked with certain ethnic groups
D) it is linked with certain socioeconomic classes
E) youth crime is overrepresented, is presented as a new problem, is linked with certain ethnic groups, and is linked with certain socioeconomic classes within media portrayals

Question 26

Which of the following is the clearest example of troubled youth?

A) gang members
B) substance abusers
C) young offenders
D) street youth
E) violent youth

Question 27

Which approach to parenting is the least likely to be associated with youth crime?

A) high levels of parental control
B) low levels of affection or nurturance
C) moderate levels of parental control
D) high levels of permissiveness
E) low levels of parental control

Question 28

Which of the following research topics reflects a critical theoretical approach?

A) the school factors that influence gang emergence and membership
B) the varying understandings of what it means to be a gang member
C) the role of youth gangs as sources of identity and resistance for marginalized youth
D) gangs as phenomena in lower socioeconomic status neighbourhoods
E) all of the research topics described above reflect a critical theoretical approach

Question 29

Surveys reveal that more than 75% teenagers get a high level of enjoyment from interactions with their mothers.

Question 30

Why did youth crime rates, as measured by official statistics, increase between 1962 and 1990?

A) more youth were brought into the criminal justice system due to changes in policing practices
B) more youth were brought into the criminal justice system due to changes in administrative practices
C) more youth were brought into the criminal justice system due to changes in legislation
D) more youth were brought into the criminal justice system due to greater public pressure to control youth crime
E) all of the processes listed above are possible reasons for the increase in youth crime rates between 1962 and 1990

Question 31

In his most recent survey of Canadian teenagers, Bibby (2009) found that more teens indicated that family life was "very important" to them than in any of his previous surveys over the past 30 years.

Question 32

During the teenage years, there are increases in conflicts with parents, extremes of emotion, and risk-taking behaviours.

Question 33

Who may benefit from the creation of moral panics about youth gangs?

A) the media, by increasing their audience and thereby their profits
B) law enforcement, by receiving more funding to hire more officers or create specialized gang units
C) gangs themselves, by increasing their membership and power within the community
D) politicians, by gaining more votes after promising to "crack down" on young offenders
E) the media, law enforcement, politicians, and gangs themselves are potential beneficiaries from moral panics about gangs

Question 34

According to Jankowski's (1991) ethnographic research, rejecting parental and
Societal values serve as which motivation for joining a gang?

A) commitment to the community
B) physical protection
C) recreation
D) time to resist
E) a place of refuge and camouflage

Question 35

Neema lives in a single parent home. Her mother's parenting style includes moderate levels of control, moderate levels of supervision, clearly explained rules and consequences, and a willingness to listen to Neema's point of view. Which of the following outcomes is most likely, considering the research that has been done on parenting style?

A) Neema is likely to be vulnerable to negative peer influences
B) Neema is likely to do poorly in school
C) Neema is likely to avoid criminal behaviour
D) Neema is likely to have low self-esteem
E) Neema is likely to have low levels of internalized self-control when away from her mother's direct supervision

Question 36

Ben says, "I joined the gang so I have someone to watch my back when I walk down the street. I've made a few enemies in my time, you know." Using Jankowski's (1991) ethnographic research, which motivation for joining a gang is Ben referring to?

A) physical protection
B) a place of refuge and camouflage
C) material incentives
D) recreation
E) a time to resist

Question 37

There are various characteristics of family life that are seen to influence the
Development of delinquent behaviour in children. Which of the following links is the weakest, according to research?

A) supervision
B) parental control
C) emotional ties between parent and child
D) parenting style
E) single motherhood

Question 38

Which theories do Grekul and LaBoucance-Benson (2007) combine in their analysis of Aboriginal gangs in Canada?

A) social bonds; conflict; labelling
B) differential association; social bonds; labelling
C) differential association; self-control; conflict
D) dramaturgy; general theory of crime; strain
E) strain; self-control; neutralization

Question 39

The belief that gangs emerge in socially and economically disadvantaged communities is the underlying belief of which theory?

A) conflict theory
B) strain theory
C) status frustration theory
D) differential association theory
E) social bonds theory

Question 40

Which of the following statements about parent-peer influence is true?

A) the single most effective predictor of youth criminal activity is criminal activity among peers
B) negative peer influence tends to cancel out any positive impact from effective parenting styles
C) effective parenting reduces the likelihood of youth associating with criminal peers
D) effective parenting reduces the influence of criminally-involved peers on youth
E) although the single most effective predictor of youth criminal activity is criminal activity among peers, effective parenting both reduces the likelihood of associating with criminal peers and reduces the influence that criminal peers have

Question 41

Identify the "most important" thing to high school boys and girls, based on research in the mid-20th century. Then explain how these interests (a) are set in motion by the adult world, and (b) have their equivalents in the adult world.

Question 42

What patterns occurred with university binge drinking, beginning in the 1990s?

A) proportion of binge drinkers increased
B) proportion of abstainers decreased
C) proportion of "frequent" binge drinkers decreased
D) binge drinking increasingly moved off campus
E) alcohol use became less polarized (i.e. there were fewer binge drinkers and fewer abstainers)

Question 43

Which of the following statements about youth smoking is true?

A) youth are less likely to smoke if they live in households where smoking is prohibited, even if their parents are smokers
B) youth are less likely to smoke if they live in households where smoking is prohibited, but only if their parents are non-smokers
C) only 20% of retailers comply with legislation that prohibits the sale of tobacco products to youth
D) more boys than girls are smokers
E) youth whose parents smoke are less likely to smoke themselves, because they see the effects of smoking on their parents' lives

Question 44

Which of the following statements about university binge drinking is true?

A) binge drinking rarely stops following university graduation
B) binge drinking is associated with alcoholism in later life
C) "dry" campuses are the most effective means of controlling binge drinking
D) experts suggest that the same efforts used to control problem drinking in society at large should be used to control binge drinking among university students
E) binge drinking is a product of the university environment combined with a particular developmental stage in life

Question 45

List and describe the five elements of a moral panic.

Question 46

During which era was adolescence described as characterized by sturm und drang?

A) Ancient Greece
B) turn of the 20th century
C) 1950s
D) 1970s
E) 1990s

Question 47

Disputing the notion of the generation gap, Berger claimed that teenage interests are

A) set in motion by adults.
B) also present in the adult world.
C) set in motion by adults, and also present in the adult world.
D) a temporary aspect of the developmental task of achieving an independent identity.
E) characteristic of the sturm und drang of adolescence.

Question 48

Discuss the problem of the prevention paradox, and explain how that problem may be overcome.

Question 49

Jake is a 17-year-old boy having an argument with his mother. Based on research on parent-teen conflict, what are Jake and his mother the least likely to be arguing about?

A) keeping his room clean
B) developing better table manners
C) his hair colour/style
D) whether or not to pursue postsecondary education after graduating
E) picking on his younger sister

Question 50

List three ways that adolescent smoking is socially controlled, and then identify each of those forms of control as (a) formal/informal and (b) preventative/retroactive.

Question 51

Which of the following statements about research on adolescence is true?

A) the lives of adults and adolescents are more similar than they are different, and the "generation gap" will likely decrease in the future
B) adolescents today spend more time in the company of adults than adolescents of the 1960s did, so the "generation gap" will likely decrease in the future
C) adolescents spend too much time in the company of adults, which creates premature entry into "adulthood"
D) the growing amount of time adolescents and adults spend apart creates a foundation for a growth in the "generation gap" in the future
E) the "generation gap" was at its peak in the 1930s

Question 52

Discuss the similarities and differences between the concept of at-risk youth, and the earlier concepts of troubled and troubling youth.

Question 53

What proportion of university students has used marijuana within the past month?

A) 87%
B) 2%
C) 17%
D) 32%
E) 51%

Question 54

What factors influence youth drug use?

A) prevalence of crime in the community
B) degree of parent-child emotional attachment
C) reading skills
D) degree of personal competence
E) a variety of factors influence youth drug use, including all of the factors listed above

Question 55

Explain how Grekul and LaBoucane-Benson (2007) combine social bonds theory, conflict theory, and labelling theory in their analysis of Aboriginal gangs in Canada.

Question 56

Compare and contrast how youth gangs are studied with positivist, interpretive, and critical theoretical approaches.

Question 57

Which piece of youth crime legislation is based more on child welfare principles than justice principles?

A) Young Offenders Act
B) Juvenile Delinquents Act
C) Youth Criminal Justice Act
D) Youth Justice Renewal Initiative
E) none of the above

Question 58

Which of the following is a retroactive form of the social control of gangs?

A) school programs that teach preschoolers basic life skills
B) programs that offer free tattoo removal
C) identifying youth who may be "at risk" and providing them with special programs
D) integrating gang awareness programs in schools
E) programs that teach children anger management

Question 59

Which piece of youth crime legislation is governed by the concept of parens patriae?

A) Young Offenders Act
B) Youth Criminal Justice Act
C) Juvenile Delinquents Act
D) Youth Justice Renewal Initiative
E) all of the above

Question 60

According to the Ontario Student Drug Use Survey, what are the three most commonly used substances, in order, by youth in grades 7 through 12?

A) (1) alcohol; (2) cannabis; (3) tobacco
B) (1) alcohol; (2) cannabis; (3) opioid pain relievers
C) (1) cannabis; (2) alcohol; (3) tobacco
D) (1) alcohol; (2) cannabis; (3) hallucinogens
E) (1) tobacco; (2) alcohol; (3) opioid pain relievers

Question 61

Explain the ways in which the adult world is responsible for troubled, troubling, and/or deviant youth. In your answer, refer to youth crime/gangs, substance use, and the "deviant" nature of adolescence itself.

Question 62

Describe the social control of youth alcohol use at a formal level. Be sure to address the social control of overall alcohol use among youth, as well as the social control of university binge drinking in particular.

Question 63

Jankowski (1991) suggests various reasons for joining a gang. Identify and describe each of the reasons. Provide an example of behaviour for each reason.

Question 64

Identify the event that resulted in the popularization of the term moral panic. Outline the five elements of a moral panic, and describe a contemporary situation (other than youth crime/gangs) that you believe is characterized by a moral panic.

Question 65

Explain what leads Sanday (cited in Vankatesh, 2003) to ask the question of why fraternities are not considered to be "gangs." Then discuss your opinion of whether there is a meaningful difference between fraternities and gangs.