Example crime and punishment dissertation topic 2:

The effects of violence upon depression in adolescents: A case study of Vietnam.

Using the Asian adolescent depression scale, this paper analyses the effects of witnessing violence upon levels of depression within adolescence in Vietnam. In so doing this paper concentrates on three distinct types of violence: first, violence experienced at home, secondly, violence within the community; and thirdly, violence at school. In focusing upon these three distinctive types of violence it is anticipated that levels of depression recorded may not only be different depending upon the time of the violence experienced but also as a consequence of gender. Grounded within existing literature and academic theory this study also benefits from collating evidence for this study from 50 students in their penultimate year of schooling within Hanoi.

Suggested initial topic reading:

• Choi, H. (2002). ‘Ancestry and ethnicity: Understanding adolescent depression in an ethno-cultural context’, Advances in Nursing Science, Vol. 25(2), pp. 71-85.
• Krug, E.G., Mercy, J.A., Dahlberg, L.L. and Zwi, A.B. (2002). ‘The world report on violence and health’, The Lancet, Vol. 360(3669), pp. 1083-1088.
• Latzman, R.D. and Swisher, R.R. (2005). ‘The interactive relationship among adolescent violence, street violence, and depression’, Journal of Community Psychology, Vol. 33, pp. 355-371.