NCJ Number
85189
Date Published
1981
Length
342 pages
Annotation
A 1977 study of 202 offenders in Tulsa County Juvenile Court (Oklahoma) found that younger, female, and status offenders received harsher dispositions than did older, male, and delinquent offenders.
Abstract
The sample included those referred to all four major dispositions: criminal court, dismissed, probation, and institutionalization. Using conflict theory, which holds that law protects those in power and enforces their interests on the less powerful, the research analyzed the sample in terms of descriptive characteristics, differences in disposition, and differences in length of supervision. The chi-square test, the T-test, and the Mann-Whitney U Test were used. Results confirmed the hypothesis that less powerful individuals who were offenders tended to receive harsher dispositions than did others. Race had little influence on the dispositions received. However, females were far more likely to be referred for status offenses, while males were more likely to be referred for delinquent offenses. A total of 56 tables and 91 references are provided.