NCJ Number
172957
Date Published
1995
Length
60 pages
Annotation
The Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 established a balanced and complementary focus on both juvenile justice system reform and juvenile delinquency prevention as dual goals.
Abstract
Over the history of the act, both Congress and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention have placed more emphasis on reform than on prevention. Recent events, however, show prevention is a necessary and essential component of efforts to reduce juvenile delinquency and violence, and there is a growing focus on juvenile delinquency prevention and intervention programs. Risk-focused strategies have identified conditions that place children most at risk of delinquent and violent behaviors and protective factors that retard the tendency to violate social norms. Knowledge of risk conditions, including those in families, neighborhoods, communities, peer groups, schools, and individual factors, facilitates the design of programs that effectively reduce juvenile delinquency and violence. Effective programs are based on knowledge of known risk factors, the connection between program activities and the goal of risk reduction, early intervention, targeting individuals and communities exposed to multiple risk factors, and needs of diverse racial and socioeconomic groups. Appendixes contain recommendations to develop and improve juvenile delinquency prevention programs and policies to promote the healthy development of young people. 163 references