Exploring juvenile delinquency and the justice system: Social workers' perspective

Social workers have been engrossed in various activities in many levels of community to aid in the social ills of a community. With all that is expected of them, it makes sense that they may hold the answers to a problem that plaques society -- juvenile delinquency. Unfortunately, very few or little research has investigated social workers to obtain their perspectives on the effectiveness of the juvenile justice system in managing and rehabilitating juvenile delinquents. The purpose of this study is to obtain the perceptions of juvenile social workers regarding their lived experience of managing and rehabilitating juvenile delinquency in the juvenile justice system. Consequently, this phenomenological study utilizes a constructivist approach aimed at better understanding participants lived experience. Individuals for the study were recruited using the purposeful sampling to obtain valuable rich data. The primary data analysis used is an interpretative phenomenological analysis which emphasizes the lived world of participants and how meaning is derived from social interpretations. Data analysis will result in categories that will enhance the understanding of juvenile delinquency and the juvenile justice system.