CRITICAL THEORY OF JUVENILE DISPOSITIONS

• NCJ Number: 52723
• Author(s): T J CARTER
• Date Published: 1978
• Length: 120 pages
• Sale Source: UMI Dissertation Services
• Publication Type: Thesis/Dissertation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE - DOCTORAL DISSERTATION

Annotation

THE CRITICAL MODEL OF JUVENILE DISPOSITIONS IS DEVELOPED AND EXAMINED IN THIS STUDY OF 350 CASES DRAWN FROM A METROPOLITAN JUVENILE COURT IN THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES.

Abstract

THE CRITICAL MODEL OF JUVENILE DISPOSITIONS USED IN THIS STUDY IS BASED ON 'CRITICAL CRIMINOLOGY.' FOUR CONCEPTUAL ISSUES OF CRITICAL CRIMINOLOGY IDENTIFIED ARE: THE ROLE OF THE STATE IN ADVANCED CAPITALIST SOCIETY, THE CLASS STRUCTURE, THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CLASS CONSCIOUSNESS AND CRIMINALITY, AND PATTERNS OF CRIME IN CAPITALIST SOCIETY. THE THEORETICAL ASSERTION OF THIS MODEL IS THAT CRIMES AGAINST PERSONS THREATEN THE LEGITIMACY OF THE STATE AS THE SOLE PROVIDER OF ORDER. PROPERTY CRIMES THREATEN THE SANCTITY OF PRIVATE PROPERTY AND ARE THOUGHT TO THREATEN THE WORKING, MIDDLE CLASS AS WELL AS RULING CLASS. IT IS REASONED, THEREFORE, THAT DISPOSTIONS OF PROPERTY OFFENDERS ARE NOT RELATED TO SOCIAL CLASS POSITIONS. THE SEVERITY OF THE DISPOSITION IS SEEN AS DEPENDENT ON THE LEGAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE OFFENSE. ON THE OTHER HAND, STATUS/VICTIMLESS CRIMES ARE SEEN AS INVENTIONS OF THE UPPER CLASS TO OPPRESS THE LOWER CLASS. THEREFORE, THE DISPOSITIONS FOR STATUS/VICTIMLESS OFFENSES ARE CLASS SPECIFIC. A SAMPLE OF 350 CASES WAS DRAWN FROM A JUVENILE COURT IN THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES. USING MULTIPLE REGRESSION ANALYSIS, A TEST OF SOCIAL CLASS BIAS IN THE DISPOSITIONS OF JUVENILE OFFENDERS WAS CONDUCTED. THE ANALYSIS INCLUDED FIVE SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC AND FOUR LEGAL INDEPENDENT VARIABLES. THE DEPENDENT VARIABLE WAS SEVERITY OF DISPOSITION. IT WAS FOUND THAT FOR TRADITIONAL OFFENSES, CRIMES AGAINST PERSON AND PROPERTY, THE NUMBER OF PREVIOUS OFFENSES, AND PRESENCE OF AN ATTORNEY WERE THE ONLY VARIABLES THAT IMPACTED ON SEVERITY OF DISPOSITION AT ALL DISPOSITION LEVELS. FOR STATUS/VICTIMLESS OFFENSES, THE ONLY VARIABLES THAT DEMONSTRATED A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON SEVERITY OF DISPOSITION AT ALL LEVELS WERE SOCIAL CLASS AND NUMBER OF PREVIOUS OFFENSES. THESE FINDINGS ARE INTERPRETED AS REVEALING GENERAL SUPPORT FOR THE PROPOSED CRITICAL MODEL OF JUVENILE DISPOSITIONS. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--MLC)