Adolescência, ato infracional e processos de identificação: um estudo de caso com adolescentes privados de liberdade

Abstract

This paper aimed to investigate how violence and the practice of infractional acts participate on the identification processes that result in the identity of adolescents in conflict with the law. A multiple case study was carried out to achieve the proposed aims. Data was collected through guided individual interviews with five male adolescents imprisoned for social and educational rehabilitation. Data analysis revealed a strong association between drug abuse and delinquency, the presence of violence in the life course of adolescents and fragilities in family relationships. Such results suggest the existence of difficulties in the process of identity construction of those adolescents that begin in early developmental times, according to the bibliography consulted. In conclusion, we suggest the need to develop new studies to clarify such issues. Finally, we present a discussion aiming to relate our results with some proposals of intervention, such as the concept of juvenile protagonism and the model of the Restorative Justice.