Delinquency Prevention and Intervention

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Delinquency Prevention and Intervention
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CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
After completing this chapter, you should be able
to

• Describe the different general types of
  delinquency prevention programs.
• Explain the concept of diversion.
• Describe the different areas of delinquency
  prevention programs.
• Give examples of programs that fall under
  delinquency prevention programs.

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CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
After completing this chapter, you should be able
to

• Describe the types of programs that generally
  dont work in delinquency prevention.
• Describe the types of programs that do tend to
  work in delinquency prevention.

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15.1 Delinquency Prevention Programs
Delinquency prevention is the subject of strong
opinions and political arguments.
delinquency prevention A broad term used to
identify a variety of programs designed to
prevent juveniles from becoming delinquent.
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Delinquency Prevention Programs

• The philosophy is appealing
• Teach juveniles the skills they need, educate
  them, give them things to do.

• The idea is simple
• The best way to deal with delinquency is to
  prevent it.

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Delinquency Prevention Programs
The history of delinquency prevention has
sometimes been a search for the panacea that will
prevent juveniles from becoming delinquent.
panacea A quick fix, a cure-all. In juvenile
delinquency prevention, panaceas are often very
short-term, not individualized, and offer nothing
in the way of follow-up or aftercare services.
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Delinquency Prevention Programs
There are a variety of programs that are very
effective at preventing delinquency.
They can be very expensive.
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Delinquency Prevention Programs
There are several general types of delinquency
prevention programs

• Diversion

Coordination and research on these programs is
handled by the Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention (OJDDP)

• Intervention
• Changing behavior

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SELF CHECK
What is meant by delinquency prevention?
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15.2 The Theory of Delinquency Prevention
The idea that delinquency can be prevented rests
on the notion that we can identify those
juveniles at risk and those juveniles who are
most in need of intervention, often through the
identification of risk factors.
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The Theory of Delinquency Prevention

• Some delinquency prevention programs are designed
  to identify at-risk juveniles and intervene in
  their lives.

• Other programs provide assistance and support to
  all juveniles.

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The Theory of Delinquency Prevention
Delinquency prevention programs can be grouped
into several different categories

• Early pre-delinquent intervention and prevention

early pre-delinquent intervention and prevention
A range of programs designed to target children
at risk of becoming delinquent based on the
identification of early risk factors.
and
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The Theory of Delinquency Prevention

• Diversion
• Programs for at-risk youths, or those showing
  early warning signs
• School-based programs
• Community-based programs
• Job services
• Recreational and time-occupying programs

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The Theory of Delinquency Prevention
In 1996, the Center for the Study and Prevention
of Violence studied more than 450 violence
prevention programs and identified ten Blueprints
Model Programs.
Blueprints Model Programs Ten model prevention
and intervention programs that meet scientific
standards of proven program effectiveness.
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SELF CHECK
Explain why a growing number of programs are
focusing on intervention and prevention.
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15.3 Early Pre-Delinquent Intervention and
Prevention
Many programs in delinquency prevention are
designed for youths who come into contact with
social service agencies or police early in life.

• Because most brain development occurs before age
  3, these programs identify early risk factors.

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Early Pre-Delinquent Intervention and Prevention
Critics have argued some of these early programs
have a negative approach and have not been
successful.
More positive approaches emphasize opportunities
for healthy social, physical, and mental
development.
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Early Pre-Delinquent Intervention and Prevention
One of the most famous programs is Project Head
Start, a broad range of social services provided
around a creative preschool curriculum.
Others have focused on the pregnant mother and
teaching parenting skills for the babys first
two years.
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Risk-Focused Prevention Programs
A growing trend is for delinquency prevention
programs to focus on the risk factors associated
with committing delinquent acts.
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Risk-Focused Prevention Programs
The SHIELD program uses the contacts that police
officers make in the course of their duties to
identify at-risk youth.

• The program provides services tailored to the
  youths individual needs.

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Risk-Focused Prevention Programs
Efforts in risk-focused prevention have recently
attempted to integrate a wider variety of
services and agencies to deal with at-risk
children.
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Risk-Focused Prevention Programs
The Children at Risk (CAR) drug and delinquency
prevention program, for kids age 11 to 13 is a
collaboration between criminal justice agencies,
schools, and other community organizations.
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Family Treatment and Intervention
Many experts are now advocating a more holistic
approach to delinquency prevention.
holistic approach An approach targeting multiple
aspects of a problem using multiple agencies and
groups instead of a single intervention method.
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Family Treatment and Intervention

• Some of these programs involve the juveniles
  family in the therapy and intervention
  programming.
• Some programs start at birth and continue to age
  5, in an attempt to intervene before problems
  arise.

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Family Treatment and Intervention
The Families and Schools Together (FAST) program
is a holistic program that attempts to build and
enhance the juveniles interactions with their
families, peers, teachers, and the community.
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SELF CHECK

• What programs focus on risk factors?
• What is meant by the holistic approach?

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15.4 Diversion
Diversionary programs are similar to probation,
but in exchange for not being formally
adjudicated the juvenile will typically agree to
participate in treatment programs. Diversion
programs attempt to correct or prevent future and
more serious problems.
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Diversion
Diversion assumes that formal processing through
the system may do more harm than good, by
stigmatizing a youth who has committed a
relatively petty crime.
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Diversion Programs
Diversion programs can be general

• Or specific
• Certain types of offenders are diverted.

• All offenders are eligible

• Serious and violent offenders are not eligible
  for diversion.
• Most diverted juveniles are first-time offenders.

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Diversion Programs
There are several problems related to diversion
programs

• Net-widening

net-widening Use of diversion and prevention
programs as a means to bring more juveniles under
court control instead of as an alternative to
formal processing.

• Constitutionalitydiversion can be seen as
  disposition without due process

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Diversion Effectiveness

• Most juveniles who come into contact with the
  system never do again.

• Research has found that diversion is successful
  in reducing system overload and deterring
  recidivism.
• The most successful programs provide intensive
  and comprehensive services.

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Diversion Effectiveness
Other research has shown some diversion programs
are not successful.
Unsuccessful programs involved net-widening and
little formal intervention.
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MYTH
FACT
Most juvenile delinquents are chronic offenders
who have multiple contacts with the juvenile
justice and criminal justice systems.
A study of the court careers of juvenile
offenders in Arizona and Utah found that 71 of
females and 54 of males who had contact with the
juvenile court had only one referral.
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SELF CHECK
Are diversion programs effective? Explain.
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15.5 School-Based Programs
Because many delinquency prevention programs
target children at a very early age, they are
school-based.
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School-Based Programs
A recent analysis of potential school-based
programs concluded

• A school district serving an area with a
  high-rate of delinquency should offer a program
  of preschool education for 3 and 4-year-olds.
• The preschool does not need to be governmental.
• A counselor should collect information from a
  variety of information to identify preschoolers
  with serious behavior problems.

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School-Based Programs

• Families should be contacted and possibly
  enrolled in a program to improve the management
  of difficult children.

• Parents should be brought into contact with
  similar families who have benefited from the
  program.
• Agencies should experiment with home visitor
  programs.

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School-Based Programs

• A significant part of a city program would be
  managed on an experimental basis with independent
  evaluation.

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SELF CHECK
What components of a school-based program has
been shown to yield the most successful results?
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15.6 Community-Based Programs
In an effort to develop a more holistic approach
to delinquency prevention, many jurisdictions
attempt to move beyond the criminal or juveniles
justice system and involve more community groups
and organizations.
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Community-Based Programs

• Communities That Care combines a holistic effort,
  involvement of multiple actors, and long-term
  planning for prevention.
• Hands Without Guns gets youths involved in
  violence prevention.

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Mentoring
Mentoring programs began in the 1800s when
several adults began serving as role models for
youths.

• Big Brothers/Big Sisters of America was founded
  in 1904 and is the largest mentoring organization
  of its kind.

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Job Services
There are a multitude of vocational and
job-related services that are available to youth
in the community.

• Some are specifically focused on delinquency
  prevention.

• Some simply aim to prepare kids for the working
  world.

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Job Services
Job corps is a national residential educational
and training program for severely disadvantaged
youths ages 16 to 24.
The program prepares youth for stable, productive
employment and entrance into further education or
training.
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Job Services
Youth apprenticeship programs place young people
in work and learning settings with training by
skilled workers. These programs benefit youths in
two ways

• By occupying their time and letting them earn
  money
• By teaching them a marketable trade or skill that
  will benefit them for life

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Job Services
The federal School-to-Work Opportunities Act
includes three elements

• School-based learning
• Work-based learning
• Connected activities that match students with
  employers, train mentors, and built other bridges
  between school and work

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Recreational and Time Occupying Programs
The majority of a juveniles time is unstructured
and unsupervised, particularly the hours
immediately after school.
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Recreational and Time Occupying Programs

• A variety of after school and evening
  recreational programs have been developed to
  better structure and occupy a juveniles free
  time.
• Example Midnight basketball

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Recreational and Time Occupying Programs

• Youth Environmental Services forms partnerships
  between government and private agencies to
  develop work programs on environmentally
  sensitive lands.

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SELF CHECK

• When did mentoring programs begin?
• Describe one of the job services programs.

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15.7 Teen Courts
Teen courts are growing in popularity.
Teen courts usually handle first-time offenders
charged with minor offenses.
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Teen Courts
A recent survey found four potential benefits of
teen courts

• Accountability
• Timeliness
• Cost savings
• Community cohesion

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Teen Courts
Most teen courts are operated by probation
departments.
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Offenses Handled in Teen Court
FIGURE 15-4
SOURCE Butts, Jeffrey A. and Janeen Buck, 2000.
Teen Courts A Focus on Research. Juvenile
Justice Bulletin October. Washington, DC Office
of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.
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Teen Court Models and Process
Juveniles are referred to teen courts in various
models from just about every component in the
juvenile justice system.
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• Overview of Teen Court Referral Process

FIGURE 15-5
SOURCE Butts, Jeffrey A. and Janeen Buck, 2000.
Teen Courts A Focus on Research. Juvenile
Justice Bulletin October. Washington, DC Office
of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.
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Teen Court Models and Process

• Most juveniles referred to teen court are offered
  the program as a voluntary alternative to formal
  processing.

• Typically, all parts in teen court are staffed by
  teens.
• Teens who go through the process, often are
  required to serve as a juror on a future case.

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Teen Court Models and Process
Teen courts generally follow one of four models

• Adult judge modeladult is judge, all other roles
  are teens
• Youth judge modelyouth acts as judge and other
  roles
• Youth tribunal modelno jury. The proceedings are
  argued before a three judge youth panel
• Peer jury modeladults argue the case to a jury
  of youths who decide guilt and disposition

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Teen Court Models and Process
Typical sanctions from teen courts include

• Community service (most common)
• Write apology letters or essays
• Serve on future teen court juries
• Participate in drug and alcohol programs
• Pay restitution

Sanctions handed out in teen courts are often
more severe than in juvenile court.
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Teen Court Effectiveness
Research on teen courts is preliminary and has
produced mixed findings.
Proponents of teen courts argue that youths and
victims are more satisfied with the teen court
experience and youths learn a greater respect for
the legal system in the process.
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SELF CHECK

• How are teens referred to teen court?
• Do adults play a role in teen court?

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15.8 Programs Focusing on Status Offenses
Recently, cities have begun to more actively
enforce status offense laws, particularly curfew
and truancy. The idea is based on the research
finding that many juvenile delinquents and
serious adult criminals were unsupervised,
undereducated, and frequently truant.
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Programs Focusing on Status Offenses
Deinstitutionalization of status offenders
prevents agencies from incarcerating juveniles
for prolonged periods for status offenses.
deinstitutionalization The removal of certain
classes of juvenile offenders from incarceration.
The deinstitutionalization of status offenders
was brought about under the JJDP Act of 1974.
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Programs Focusing on Status Offenses
Yet chronic truants, curfew violators, and
runaways are typically the most at-risk and the
most in need of intervention.
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Programs Focusing on Status Offenses
One police department reported drops in juvenile
crime when they began aggressively enforcing
curfew.
More importantly, they saw a drop in juvenile
victimization.
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Programs Focusing on Status Offenses
Many scholars question the constitutionality and
effectiveness of aggressive enforcement of curfew
and truancy laws.
At this point, evidence is mixed.
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SELF CHECK
What is the philosophy underlying programs that
focus on status offenses?
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15.9 What Doesnt Work
Unfortunately, the search for a cure for
delinquency has sometimes resulted in quick-fix
solutions.
Programs often claim startling success, which is
frequently followed by evaluation that reveals
the program is no more successful than
traditional interventions.
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Scared Straight
Scared Straight is the classic example of an
unsuccessful quick-fix.

• The program was popularized by a TV program that
  took delinquent youths inside the prison system
  to be confronted by inmates who threatened the
  juveniles with violence and rape.
• This was intended to scare the juveniles into
  not committing further delinquencies.

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Scared Straight
With claims of remarkable success, the program
was quickly duplicated around the country, losing
all semblance of treatment along the way.

• Juveniles typically visited a prison for only a
  few hours.
• Follow-up was scant.

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Scared Straight
Research eventually showed the programs claims
of success were grossly exaggerated and the
program was even less successful than other
interventions.
Two hours of yelling and threats simply couldnt
fix years of poor socialization and psychological
problems.
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SELF CHECK
Describe the Scared Straight program.
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15.10 What Does Work?
The notion that nothing works is one of the
leading reasons people give for abolition of the
entire juvenile justice system.
However, compared with other aspects of criminal
justice, the juvenile justice system is very
successful.
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What Does Work?
Most juveniles who come into contact with the
system do not recidivate.
In recent years, a growing body of evidence has
shown that many programs are helping youth
develop into responsible, self-sufficient
citizens.
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What Does Work?
Programs that work share common characteristics

• Quality of implementation
• Caring, knowledgeable adults
• High standards and expectations
• Parent/guardian participation
• Community involvement

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What Does Work?

• Community involvement
• Holistic approaches
• Youth as resources
• Community service and service-learning
• Work-based learning
• Long-term services, support, and follow-up

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What Does Work?
In addition, successful programs

• use a multifaceted approach, not a single
  intervention.
• have an aftercare component.
• serve relatively small numbers of juveniles.

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Cost-Effectiveness of Prevention
One question about delinquency prevention that
always concerns policy-makers and practitioners
is the cost of the programs relative to their
benefits.
A popular way to measure effectiveness is to
compare the cost of the program per child to the
cost to process the juvenile in the system.
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Cost-Effectiveness of Prevention
Well-designed programs lead to

• Increased emotional or cognitive development
• Improved educational outcomes
• Enhanced economic self-sufficiency
• Decreased criminal activity
• Improved health-related indicators
• But at what cost?

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Cost-Effectiveness of Prevention
A recent review concluded that at least for some
disadvantaged children, cost savings could be
achieved through early intervention13,000 to
18,000 per family.
Another study found prevention programs provided
more savings than three-strikes legislation (5.5
billion a year).
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SELF CHECK
What common characteristics do successful
programs share?
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• END OF CHAPTER