AN INSIGHT INTO RECIDIVISM AMONG MALE AWAITING-TRIAL YOUTH OFFENDERS AND THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

Recidivism among young offenders is a major concern for society in general and a challenge forall the helping professionals working within the field of rehabilitation of young offenders. Earlytherapeutic and statutory interventions with young people in conflict with the law are primarilyfocused on their rehabilitation. The high rate of recidivism among young offenders leads toquestions about the effectiveness of the therapeutic and statutory interventions available to them.The ineffectiveness of early interventions with young offenders calls for an understanding of howthese young recidivists experience the world around them. An underlying assumption is that agood understanding of various factors that young recidivists believe contribute to their reoffendingwill help to guide and inform early therapeutic and statutory interventions designed tohelp them and their families so as to prevent re-offences from occurrin