Exploring the Temporal Dimension in Juvenile Delinquency Desistance Research

The government of children and youth from impoverished sectors has historically been marked by a linear concern about the future, focusing on anticipating and preventing undesirable or deviant trajectories that threaten the social and political projects of each era. In relation to juvenile delinquency, the interest in how the future is organized, in contrast to a deviant past, underlies the regulatory categories that shape state practices of inclusion, control, and punishment: "life project" and "subjective transformation." Studies focused on the processes of "desistance from crime" propose a non-linear consideration of this future-oriented process and highlight the importance of longitudinal studies for understanding the biographies of individuals involved in crime. This presentation identifies the main discussions within the field of juvenile delinquency desistance studies, emphasizing how various scales and intensities of past, present, and future—both subjective and social—contribute to understanding the biographies of young people engaged in criminal activities.