Throughout history and in contemporary Britain “a pattern of moral panics about 'depraved youth' has been a dominant and recurring feature of media representations of young people” (Muncie, 2004, p. 8), and as a result, the youth-crime nexus has undergone vast transformations in terms of the conception of “youth crime” and its prevalent consequences (Omaji, 2003). In the post-war period, young “folk-devils” were continually singled out by the media as the underlying source of public anxiety and the main cause of concern about “what was wrong with society” (Muncie, 2009, p. 127 ). Among these public concerns were fears evident in 1960s Britain regarding violent and depraved youths in addition to the perceived threat of hooliganism and vandalism, all of which were characteristic of the "folk devils" evident at that time (e.g. "Mods and Rockers") (Muncie, 1999). Although moral panic covers a broad spectrum of literature and relates to different aspects of society at various levels, this essay will only take a specific focal position on moral panic regarding young people's behavior throughout history and in contemporary Britain, lending particular attention to the consequences of such moral panic. The essay will begin with a concise explanation of the term "moral panic" and the context in which it was coined, followed by an in-depth analysis of the most influential moral panics regarding concerns about deviant youth behaviors in relation to their societal repercussions. individual and social level. The material presented will reveal the role that not only the media, but also wider entities play in amplifying the perceived problems and threats of "youth crime", thus demonstrating how young people's perception... middle of paper... . 3rd ed. London: Sage.Muncie, J., Hughes, G. and McLaughlin, E. (eds) (2002) Youth Justice: Critical Readings. London: Sage.Omaji, OP (2003) Responding to youth crime: towards radical criminal justice partnerships. Sydney: Hawkins Press.Pearce, J.M. and Charman, E. (2011) 'A social psychological approach to understanding moral panic', Crime Media Culture, 7(3), pp. 293-311.Ralphs, R., Medina, J . and Aldridge, J. (2009) “Who needs enemies with friends like these?” The importance of place for young people living in known gang areas', Journal of Youth Studies, 12 (5), pp. 483-500. Springhall, J. (1998) Youth, Popular Culture and Moral Panics: Penny gaffs to gansta- rap, 1830-1996. Basingstoke: Macmillan.Thomson, K. (1998) Moral panic.London: Routledge.Waiton, S. (2008) The politics of antisocial behaviour: amoral panic.