NCJ Number
68097
Journal
COMMUNITY HOME SCHOOLS GAZETTE Volume: 1 Issue: 71 Dated: (1978) Pages: 444-453
Date Published
1978
Length
10 pages
Annotation
THIS BRITISH STUDY SOUGHT INFORMATION ON THE OUTCOMES OF BOYS WHO, AFTER ASSESSMENT, WERE SENT UNDER LOCAL AUTHORITY SUPERVISION TO THEIR OWN HOMES OR TO FAMILY GROUP HOMES.
Abstract
DURING 1973, 139 BOYS WERE SENT HOME AFTER ASSESSMENT AND EACH BOY'S SOCIAL WORKER WAS INTERVIEWED. RESEARCHERS RECEIVED 96 RESPONSES TO THE FOLLOWUP INQUIRY. RETURNED CASES WERE COMPARED WITH NONRETURNS ON AGE, INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT, FAMILY SIZE, NUMBER OF COURT APPEARANCES, AND LENGTH OF OFFENDING PERIOD; NO DIFFERENCES EMERGED, SO THE RETURNED CASES WERE TYPICAL OF THE TOTAL SAMPLE SENT HOME. THE AVERAGE LENGTH OF OFFENDING EXPERIENCE WAS AT 2 YEARS, ONE YEAR LESS THAN THE AVERAGE OF THE TOTAL POPULATION AT THE ASSESSMENT CENTER. BOYS HAD SLIGHTLY MORE CHANCE OF SUCCEEDING IN THEIR HOME PLACEMENT IF THEIR PREVIOUS OFFENSE WAS MINOR, WHILE THE ACTUAL NUMBER OF COURT APPEARANCES DID NOT DISCRIMINATE BETWEEN SUCCESSES AND FAILURES. BOYS WHO MAKE A SUCCESS OF A RETURN HOME HAVE MARGINALLY MORE FAVORABLE HOME SETTINGS, WHILE LEVEL OF EDUCATIONAL SKILLS AND INTELLIGENCE HAD NO BEARING ON OUTCOMES. THE GREATER PROPORTION OF BOYS SENT TO A HOME SETTING GOT INTO TROUBLE AGAIN AND WERE SENT TO A COMMUNITY SCHOOL OR BORSTAL. THE STUDY CONCLUDED THAT THE SUCCESS RATE IN THIS SAMPLE DIFFERED LITTLE FROM THAT SHOWN BY THEIR PEERS WHO ARE ALLOCATED TO COMMUNITY SCHOOLS, AND CONFIRMS THE FINDING THAT, IN GENERAL, WHATEVER TREATMENT DEPRIVED AND OFFENDING CHILDREN RECEIVE DOES LITTLE TO INFLUENCE THEIR OFFENDING AGAIN AT A LATER DATE. TABLES AND FOUR REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED.