Parenting Practices and Juvenile Delinquency in Urban Zambia: A Case Study of Chipata Central Constituency

Abstract

This study investigated the relationship between parenting practices and juvenile delinquency in Chipata Central Constituency, Eastern Province, Zambia. The research examined how parenting styles, parental care, parental attachment, and spiritual nurturing influence delinquent behaviors including aggression, emotional instability, child prostitution, and disobedience among young people.
A cross-sectional survey design used 100 randomly selected parents from 31 residential areas in Chipata Central Constituency. Data were collected using structured questionnaires with Likert-scale items and analyzed using SPSS version 26. Pearson correlation coefficients established relationships between parenting variables and delinquent outcomes. Qualitative data from open-ended questions were analyzed through thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke's (2021) framework. Instrument reliability was assessed using Cronbach's alpha (α = .775), with subscale alphas from .71 to .82, exceeding the acceptable threshold (Taber, 2018; Nunnally, 1978).