This situation should come as no surprise since even the academic study of delinquent behavior has, for all intents and purposes, been the study of male delinquency. "The delinquent is a rogue male" stated by Albert Cohen in his influential book on gang delinquency. A decade later, Travis Hirschi, with his equally important book entitled The Causes of Delinquency, regulated women and suggested in a somewhat apologetic manner that "in analysis that follows, the 'non-Negro' becomes 'white,' and the girls disappear."

This pattern of neglect is not all that unusual. All areas of social inquiry have been notoriously gender

A sample survey of girls in the juvenile justice system in Wisconsin revealed that 79% had been subjected to physical abuse that resulted in some form of injury, and 32% had been sexually abused by parents or other persons who were closely connected to their families. 50% also had been sexually assaulted (raped or forced to participate in sexual acts). A study in Arizona also found that youths charged with running away, truancy, or listed as missing persons were victims of incest.

In conclusion, many studies have been researched in an attempt to find the reasons for female delinquency. Although recent decades have shown changing crime trends amongst women, the fact remains that females continue to be the victims of violence and sexual abuse. American society has defined as desirable youth, physically perfect women, which unfortunately also means that the criminal subculture views them from this perspective as well. But unlike males, females' victimization and their response to it is specifically shaped by their status as females, and it is still evident today.

The Delinquency Theory, being that it has virtually ignored female delinquency, fails to pursue "anomalies" that have been found in earlier studies that have examined gender differences in delinquent behavior. But also, some theories have ignored status offenses as well.

Specifically, it is incorrect to assume that because girls are charged with less serious crimes, they actually have "few problems and are treated gently" when they are drawn into the juvenile justice system. The focus on disadvantaged males in public settings has meant that girls' victimization and the relationship between that experience and girls' crime has been "systematically ignored." Also missed is the central role-played in the juvenile justice system in the sexualization of girls' survival strategies.

"First, the social patterns for the behavior of girls, powerfully backed by the great weight of tradition and custom, are contrary to the gang and its activities; and secondly, girls, even in urban disorganized areas, are much more closely supervised and guarded than boys and usually well incorporated into the family groups or some other social structure."

Studies of early family court activity revealed that "virtually all the girls who appeared in these courts were charged for immortality or waywardness." To the point the sanctions for such misbehavior were extremely severe. For example, in Chicago (where the first family court was founded), one-half of the girl delinquents, but only one-fifth of the boy delinquents, were sent to reformatories between 1899-1909. In Milwaukee, twice as many girls as boys were committed to training schools; and in Memphis females were twice as likely as males to be committed to training schools.

Not surpris

Some common words found in the essay are:
Causes Delinquency, Linda Hancock's, Delinquency Theory, Susan Anthony, Teilmann Landry, , Progressive Movement, status offenses, Dependent Children, delinquent behavior, Albert Cohen, female delinquency, juvenile justice, justice system, juvenile justice system, Travis Hirschi, training schools, committed training schools, girls arrested, female misbehavior, self-reported delinquency, referred court, male female delinquency, non-criminal status offenses, boys referred court,
Approximate Word count = 1906
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)