RISK FACTORS OF DEVIANT BEHAVIOR OF TEENAGERS: AGE AND GENDER SPECIFICITY

Abstract

The article raises a problem of detecting and preventing signs of deviations in children and adolescents. The aim of the research is to study features of manifestation, age dynamics and gender specificity of risk factors that increase the likelihood of deviant behavior in adolescents and protective factors that must be taken into account during psychological and pedagogical support. The results of an empirical study of 680 students of general education institutions aged 13 to 18 years are presented. To solve the research tasks, the “Unified Methodology of Socio-Psychological Testing” (EMPT) was used, which makes it possible to identify risk factors leading to deviant behavior of respondents and protective factors that allow them to withstand the negative effects of the environment. The analysis of the data shows that risk factors such as “The need for group attention”, “Risk seeking”, and “Anxiety” have the greatest negative impact on respondents, and adolescents are more susceptible to this. The prevailing protection factors are “Acceptance by parents”, “Acceptance by classmates”, “Frustration resistance”, and “Self-control of behavior”.