NCJ Number
83728
Date Published
1982
Length
172 pages
Annotation
The hearings focused on the early identification and classification of juvenile delinquents in order to develop programs to remove juveniles from the crime cycle.
Abstract
The purpose of this early identification would be to determine a critical point in the youth's development at which some intervention such as family counseling or corrective actions might succeed in preventing future delinquency in that individual. In a review of research attempting to predict future delinquency, a professor at the University of Virginia School of Law noted that the childhood predictors of criminality include three clusters of factors: parent factors such as parents' criminality and harsh physical discipline, child factors such as temperament and age of onset of delinquency, and school factors such as interpersonal difficulties and academic difficulties. However, the use of these factors would result in only 50 percent accuracy, at best, in predicting future criminality. The negative effects of intervention programs are unknown, while the positive effects are generally unknown but have tended in the past to be minimal. Other speakers advocated intervention early in childhood through the provision of day care or other resources, the removal of abused children from the home if the home cannot be made safe, and the use of indigenous community groups and community centers to involve whole families in positive community activities. Other speakers advocated longitudinal research on the effects of various interventions and interventions only with youths who had been adjudicated. Written statements, footnotes, graphs, tables, and an appendix presenting additional written testimony are provided.