NCJ Number
13596
Date Published
1972
Length
212 pages
Annotation
COMPARISON OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PROFESSIONALS AND NON-PROFESSIONALS AS COUNSEL OF JUVENILE PROBATIONERS.
Abstract
THE STUDY POPULATION CONSISTED OF 80 MALE JUVENILES. FORTY JUVENILES COUNSELED BY VOLUNTEERS WERE PRECISION MATCHED WITH 40 PROBATIONERS COUNSELED BY PROBATION OFFICERS. SUBJECTS WERE MATCHED IN PAIRS ON THE BASIS OF SEX, AGE, SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS, OFFENSE HISTORY, ETHNICITY, AND LENGTH OF TIME IN THE STUDY. AN ATTEMPT IS MADE TO ACCOUNT THEORETICALLY FOR THE EFFECTS OF THE TWO METHODS OF COUNSELING ON THE ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR OF THE JUVENILES UNDER STUDY. TWO HYPOTHESES ARE TESTED. INTERACTION INCREASES BETWEEN TWO OR MORE PERSONS, THEIR LIKING OF EACH OTHER WILL LIKEWISE INCREASE, AND VICE VERSA - PROVIDED AUTHORITARIANISM DOES NOT ENTER THE RELATIONSHIP. THE SECOND HYPOTHESES TESTED HEREIN SUGGESTS THAT IF THE DEGREE OF LIKING AND INTERACTION BETWEEN TWO OR MORE PERSONS INCREASES, THE MORE ALIKE THEIR ACTIVITIES (OPERATIONALIZED AS ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR) TEND TO BECOME, AND VICE VERSA. AS IS THE CASE IN THE FIRST HYPOTHESIS, THIS THEORETICAL RELATIONSHIP DOES NOT HOLD IF AUTHORITARIANISM INTERVENES. FINALLY, OUR GENERAL RESEARCH QUESTION IS TESTED - WHETHER PROBATION OFFICERS OR VOLUNTEERS ARE MORE EFFECTIVE COUNSELORS. THE DATA SUGGESTED VERY WEAK SUPPORT FOR THE TWO HYPOTHESES. THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN COUNSELOR AND PROBATIONER LIKING OF EACH OTHER AND FREQUENCY OF INTERACTION WERE FOUND TO BE EXTREMELY WEAK. NOR WERE INCREASES OR GAINS IN THE TWO VARIABLES FOUND TO BE STRONGLY CORRELATED THROUGH RESIDUALIZED GAIN SCORE ANALYSIS. IN FACT, THE PROBATIONERS PERCEIVED THEIR COUNSELORS AS LIKING THEM LESS WHEN INTERACTIONS WERE MORE FREQUENT. AUTHORITARIANISM DID INTERVENE IN THE LIKING AND INTERACTION RELATIONSHIP ALTHOUGH NOT IN THE EXPECTED WAY. THE STRONGER POSITIVE (ALTHOUGH NOT SIGNIFICANT) CORRELATIONS WERE OBSERVED WHEN AUTHORITARIANISM WAS HIGH RATHER THAN LOW. REGARDING THE SECOND HYPOTHESIS, GAIN SCORE ANALYSIS REVEALED STRONGER CORRELATIONS BETWEEN GAINS IN LIKING AND GAINS IN THE DIRECTION OF IMPROVEMENT IN PROBATIONER ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR THAN BETWEEN INTERACTION AND ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR. (TEN MEASURES OF CHANGES IN ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR -- THE DEPENDENT VARIABLE -- WERE MADE - ANOMIE, FAMILY ADJUSTMENT AS PERCEIVED BY PROBATIONERS AND COUNSELORS, SOCIAL ADJUSTMENT WITH PEERS AND ADULT AUTHORITY AS PERCEIVED BY PROBATIONERS AND COUNSELORS, ACADEMIC ADJUSTMENT, GRADE POINT AVERAGE, POLICE CONTACTS, AND DELINQUENT ACTS.) AUTHORITARIANISM AGAIN INTERVENED IN AN UNEXPECTED DIRECTION. THE STRONGEST POSITIVE CORRELATIONS BETWEEN GAINS IN LIKING AND INTERACTION AND THE DEPENDENT VARIABLES APPEARED WHEN AUTHORITARIANISM WAS HIGH. PROBATIONERS COUNSELED BY VOLUNTEERS APPEARED TO HAVE QUALITATIVELY BETTER RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEIR COUNSELORS THAN DID PROBATIONERS COUNSELED BY PROBATION OFFICERS. AT THE OUTSET VOLUNTEERCOUNSELED PROBATIONERS LIKED THEIR COUNSELORS SIGNIFICANTLY MORE, PERCEIVED THEIR COUNSELORS AS LIKING THEM SIGNIFICANTLY MORE, AND PERCEIVED THEIR COUNSELORS AS BEING LESS AUTHORITARIAN THAN DID PROBATION OFFICERCOUNSELED PROBATIONERS. HOWEVER, THESE DIFFERENCES TENDED TO DISAPPEAR THROUGHOUT TIME - THAT IS, IN RELATIONSHIPS OF LONGER THAN 6 OR 9 MONTHS DURATION. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT)