Causes and Consequences of Juvenile Crime and Violence: Public Attitudes and Question-Order Effect

• NCJ Number: 176736
• Journal: American Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 23 Issue: 1 Dated: Fall 1998 Pages: 129-143
• Author(s): T C Hart
• Date Published: 1998
• Length: 15 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined public opinion about the causes and consequences of juvenile crime and violence and explored the effects of question order on public opinion.

Abstract

Data for the study were collected in 1996 through a telephone survey of 492 respondents from Shelby County (Memphis), Tenn. The study explored the relationship between attitudes about juvenile crime and sociodemographic factors. Findings show that the level of agreement on several of the items did vary according to sociodemographics and whether statements regarding the causes or consequences of juvenile crime were presented first. Consistent with other studies, this exploratory study identified some degree of punitiveness by respondents toward juvenile offenders; many respondents perceived that the juvenile justice system is too lenient. The data also show support for other than punitive measures. Eighty-four percent of respondents indicated they either agree or strongly agree with the statement that a breakdown in the American family is a cause of juvenile crime. Moreover, a majority of respondents said they either "agree" or "strongly agree" with the statements that increased poverty among parents and increased cultural, racial, and ethnic diversity in America are causes of juvenile crime and violence; however, respondents indicated that sending a juvenile to jail will not stop them from committing future crimes. The author advises that, given the complexity of public opinion about the causes and consequences of juvenile crime and violence, it is doubtful that simple survey questions can unravel the relationships among the many variables. Likewise, the demographic variables of sex and race used in this study are not sufficiently broad-based to obtain an understanding of the various categories to which respondents may belong (e.g., perhaps there is an interaction effect between race and income or sex and educational level). At best, public opinion surveys such as the one used in this study can yield only an elementary understanding of attitudes based on several demographic factors. 1 table and 22 references