Juvenile Delinquency Book

Acknowledgments xiii

1 Introduction 1

Definition of Juvenile Delinquency 3

Brief History of "Delinquency" 5

Juvenile Delinquency Law in Illinois 6

Plan of This Book 7

2 The History of Juvenile Justice in America 11

19th-Century Reform efforts and Practices 14

Long-Term Juvenile Institutions 17

Late 19th-Century Developments 20

The First Delinquency Law and the Establishment of the Juvenile Court 23

Early 20th-Century Developments 26

Summary 27

3 The Measurement of Delinquency 31

Arrest Data 32

Arrest Patterns 34

Gender 34

Race 35

Age 36

Juvenile Court Data 39

Self-Report Data 41

Reliability and Validity Issues or Concerns 41

Conclusions of Self-Report Studies 42

Cohort Studies 52

Victimization Studies 54

A Note on Hate Crimes 56

Other Methods 57

Summary 58

4 The Classical School, Rational Choice, and Individualistic Explanations of Delinquency 63

The Classical School 64

Rational Choice Theory and Delinquency 66

Lombroso and the Positive School 67

Early Biological Explanations of Delinquency 68

Inheritance and Delinquency 68

Somatotypes and Delinquency 70

Contemporary Biological Explanations of Delinquency 71

Inheritance and Delinquency-Newer Studies 71

Somatotype Studies Continued 72

Learning Disabilities 73

Conditionability (ANS) and Delinequency 76

Psychological Explanations of Delinquency 77

The Psychoanalytic View 78

Intelligence and Delinquency 79

Personality Factors 81

Summary 84

5 Social Development and Delinquency 95

Kohlberg's Moral Development Model 96

Social Development Model 97

Pathways to Delinquency 97

Moffitt's Research 97

A General Theory of Crime-Another View of PersistentCriminality 100

Sampson and Laub and Turning Points in Criminal Careers 101

Summary 105

6 Social Process Theories 111

Differential Association Theory 112

Discussion of the Theory 114

A Note on Exposure to Media Violence and Delinquency 117

Drift Theory 119

Control Theories 122

Internal Controls 123

Social Control Theory-The Social Bond 125

Institutional Connections and Delinquency 127

A Note on General Strain Theory 130

Summary 131

7 The Family and Delinquency 139

"Broken Homes" and Delinquency 140

Family Relationships and Delinquency 144

The "Inheritance" of Delinquency 146

Corporal Punishment and Delinquency 148

Child Abuse and Delinquency 149

Summary 154

8 Schools and Delinquency 161

The School as a Source of Motivation for Delinquency 161

School Dropout and Delinquency 167

School Safety 169

Effects of School Shootings and Prevention Efforts 174

Delinquency Prevention through Early Childhood Education 178

Legal Rights of Students at School 181

Summary 183

9 Drug Use among Youth 191

Extent and Patterns of Juvenile Drug Use 192

Correlates of Drug Use 198

Geographical 198

Social 199

Explanations of Juvenile Drug Use 200

Macro Explanations 200

Social-Psychological Factors 201

Personality Factors 203

Drug Use and Delinquency 204

Treatment and Prevention of Drug Use among Juveniles 206

Drug Courts 207

Preventing Drug Use among Youth 210

D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) 212

Summary 213

10 Juvenile Gangs 221

Studies of Youth Gangs 223

Thrasher's Study of Gangs in Chicago 223

Whyte's Study of Gangs in Boston 225

Yablonsky's Study of Violent Gangs in New York City 226

Surveys of Gangs: The 1970s to the Present 228

Summary of Gang Studies 234

MS-13-A "New" Gang Problem? 235

Gang Identification 237

Representing 237

Graffiti and Hand Gestures 238

Another Look at Female Gangs 239

Why Do Youth Join Gangs? 241

Structural Factors 241

Psychological and Personal Reasons for Joining a Gang 249

Why Do Gang Members Leave the Gang? 251

Attempts to Prevent or Control Gangs 253

Gang Suppression 253

Community-Based Prevention Programs 256

School-Based Gang Prevention 257

Comprehensive Gang-Prevention Efforts 259

Summary 260

11 Female Delinquency 269

Who Are Female Delinquents? 270

Girls, Delinquency, and Status Offenses 271

Girls, Delinquency, and Theory 272

Biological Explanations 272

Social Role Theory 274

Liberation Theory 276

Liberation Theory 276

Power Control Theory 279

Feminist Perspectives 282

Summary 284

12 Labeling and Conflict Theories 289

Key Concepts of Labeling Theory 290

Discussion of the Theory 292

Labeling and Self-Concept 293

Labeling and Bahavior 294

Connections with Juvenile Justice 296

Conflict Theories 297

Summary 300

13 The Contemporary Juvenile Justice System 307

An Overview of the Modern Juvenile Justice System 308

The Processing of Cases through the System 316

Transferring Cases from Juvenile Court Jurisdication to Adult Court Jurisdiction 320

Legal Guidelines for Waiver Decisions 323

Consequences of Transfers 324

Blended Sentences 325

Other Considerations 326

Diversion 326

Restorative Justice 327

Summary 328

14 Police and Courts 333

The Police 333

The Role of the Police in Juvenile Justice 334

Processing Cases 335

The Court System 337

Decision-Making Factors 342

The Police 342

The Courts 349

Other Considerations 351

Summary 352

Supreme Court Cases Affecting the Rights of Juveniles Processed by the Police and Courts 353

Diversion 357

Youth Courts 359

Summary 361

15 Juvenile Institutions and the Treatment and Prevention of Delinquency 367

Juvenile Correctional Institutions 368

Detention Centers or Homes 368

Correctional Facilities 372

Characteristics of Long-Term Institutions 379

Structural Organization 381

Effectiveness of Correctional Institutions 384

Treatment and Prevention Programs 387

Treatment Programs within Institutions 388

Delinquency Prevention Programs 396

A Note on Treatment and Prevention Program Evaluation 406

Summary 408

Epilogue 419

Index 425

About the Author 447