<![CDATA[Juvenile delinquency and children’s involvement in criminal behavior cannot be understood merely as individual legal violations. This study aims to analyze children’s criminal behavior from social control perspective. Employing a qualitative approach with a comparative case study design, this research analyzes five cases of children in conflict with the law in West Sumatra. The data were examined through thematic analysis focusing on children’s relationships with family, peers, school, and community, as well as the functioning of social control mechanisms. The findings show that peer groups play an important role in shaping child deviant behavior, particularly when informal social control within families and communities is weak. Emotional attachment and consistent parental supervision are more influential than the mere structural presence of the family. This study contributes to sociological discourse by integrating social control theory and differential association theory within an empirical Litmas-based analysis, highlighting the importance of relational dynamics in explaining juvenile delinquency. It concludes that juvenile delinquency is the result of imbalanced social interactions, emphasizing the need for preventive strategies that strengthen family- and community-based social control.]]>
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