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Reception and Preventive Counseling Room
Haskovo Youth Center
Background
The severe economic situation in the country, uncertainty and disillusionment, the absence of positive role models in society, compounded by specific factors of personal nature, result in aggressive and delinquent behavior among the young, and Haskovo has not been spared. The local Youth Center team have taken it upon themselves to make the Center into a true focal point for young people, a partner always ready to respond to their problems. They have therefore welcomed the idea suggested by the local district police force spokesman Major Gospodinov of a co-operative effort to deal with the so called difficult children by setting up a contact point for them and those willing to help.
The severe economic situation in the country, uncertainty and disillusionment, the absence of positive role models in society, compounded by specific factors of personal nature, result in aggressive and delinquent behavior among the young, and Haskovo has not been spared. The local Youth Center team have taken it upon themselves to make the Center into a true focal point for young people, a partner always ready to respond to their problems. They have therefore welcomed the idea suggested by the local district police force spokesman Major Gospodinov of a co-operative effort to deal with the so called difficult children by setting up a contact point for them and those willing to help.
Practice
In October 1998, the district police force [District Directorate of Home Affairs] opened its Reception Room for members of the public, together with a Preventive Counseling Room for delinquent children and adolescents and their parents. A well-targeted effort was launched to help with crime prevention.
Every Tuesday, Major Gospodinov and Third Lieutenant Racheva of the Juvenile Delinquency Service meet parents, who bring their worst fears to them, talk with them and offer helpful advice on how to deal with problems in the family. Young people also come, bringing problems of their own, in the hope of regaining their lost bearings. Juvenile delinquents and criminals are the focus of a particularly caring professional attention; they too are among the Center s visitors. The Preventive Counseling Room will also look into petitions and complaints relating to abuse of individual rights and freedoms, home violence or police brutality.
The Counseling Room has established remarkable working relations with a broad range of relevant professionals. The visitors have ready access to the necessary specialist advice. Psychologist Gergana Todorova is in greatest demand. First, the cause of the problem must be sorted out; follow-up meetings are then arranged with the parents to identify and discuss the best ways for them of dealing with their children. Having talked to the parents, the police officers and the psychologist discuss their findings and observations, and appoint another meeting with the children.
The Counseling Room also seeks support from the teachers. The close friends of the problem youngster may also become involved or, if necessary, efforts may be made to isolate the subject from their harmful influence. Free advice from a sexologist or a lawyer can also be obtained. Still, the psychologist seems to be the preferred person in whom the youngsters are ready to confide and who can in turn influence the shaping of their personalities.
The visitors to the Counseling Room include in particular:
Adolescents (aged 15 to 19) who come with puzzling questions about changes in their lives they find hard to comprehend. They usually come from an unsound social environment where family dynamics have been severely disrupted by, say, the death of a parent, alcoholism or home violence. They are mainly troubled by a sense of loneliness, hopelessness, anxiety; the other extremes being heightened aggressiveness or arrogance, alcohol and drug abuse, delinquent behavior or attempted larceny.
Others are quite clear about the root causes of their problems and failures but are at a loss for a way to deal with them properly. These include cases where social factors are at play such as poverty, unemployment, professional conflicts, social isolation and alienation, or a physical suffering.
This broad variety and complexity of the problems requires the joint efforts of a team of specialists and the people from the Home Affairs Directorate. The main difficulty, however, lies in the persistent shortage of funds. (The Preventive Counseling Room, according to the arrangement made with the District Director of Home Affairs, is only open during regular office hours.)
In October 1998, the district police force [District Directorate of Home Affairs] opened its Reception Room for members of the public, together with a Preventive Counseling Room for delinquent children and adolescents and their parents. A well-targeted effort was launched to help with crime prevention.
Every Tuesday, Major Gospodinov and Third Lieutenant Racheva of the Juvenile Delinquency Service meet parents, who bring their worst fears to them, talk with them and offer helpful advice on how to deal with problems in the family. Young people also come, bringing problems of their own, in the hope of regaining their lost bearings. Juvenile delinquents and criminals are the focus of a particularly caring professional attention; they too are among the Center s visitors. The Preventive Counseling Room will also look into petitions and complaints relating to abuse of individual rights and freedoms, home violence or police brutality.
The Counseling Room has established remarkable working relations with a broad range of relevant professionals. The visitors have ready access to the necessary specialist advice. Psychologist Gergana Todorova is in greatest demand. First, the cause of the problem must be sorted out; follow-up meetings are then arranged with the parents to identify and discuss the best ways for them of dealing with their children. Having talked to the parents, the police officers and the psychologist discuss their findings and observations, and appoint another meeting with the children.
The Counseling Room also seeks support from the teachers. The close friends of the problem youngster may also become involved or, if necessary, efforts may be made to isolate the subject from their harmful influence. Free advice from a sexologist or a lawyer can also be obtained. Still, the psychologist seems to be the preferred person in whom the youngsters are ready to confide and who can in turn influence the shaping of their personalities.
The visitors to the Counseling Room include in particular:
Adolescents (aged 15 to 19) who come with puzzling questions about changes in their lives they find hard to comprehend. They usually come from an unsound social environment where family dynamics have been severely disrupted by, say, the death of a parent, alcoholism or home violence. They are mainly troubled by a sense of loneliness, hopelessness, anxiety; the other extremes being heightened aggressiveness or arrogance, alcohol and drug abuse, delinquent behavior or attempted larceny.
Others are quite clear about the root causes of their problems and failures but are at a loss for a way to deal with them properly. These include cases where social factors are at play such as poverty, unemployment, professional conflicts, social isolation and alienation, or a physical suffering.
This broad variety and complexity of the problems requires the joint efforts of a team of specialists and the people from the Home Affairs Directorate. The main difficulty, however, lies in the persistent shortage of funds. (The Preventive Counseling Room, according to the arrangement made with the District Director of Home Affairs, is only open during regular office hours.)
Results
During the first six months of operation, the Preventive Counseling Room has had regular contacts with seven families. The first quarter of 1999 has seen a decline in juvenile delinquency from the same quarter of 1998. Two adolescents have totally abandoned their former life-styles to become members of green societies sponsored by the Youth Center.
During the first six months of operation, the Preventive Counseling Room has had regular contacts with seven families. The first quarter of 1999 has seen a decline in juvenile delinquency from the same quarter of 1998. Two adolescents have totally abandoned their former life-styles to become members of green societies sponsored by the Youth Center.
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