Compared with juveniles who start offending in adolescence, child delinquents (age 12 and younger) are two to three times more likely to become tomorrow's serious and violent offenders. This propensity, however, can be minimized. These children are potentially identifiable either before they begin committing crimes or at the very early stages of…

Reports results of meta-analysis to quantitatively summarize prior empirical research on alternative schools. Alternative education programs have a small overall effect on school performance, attitudes toward school, and self-esteem, but no effect on delinquency. Programs that target a specific population of at-risk youth produce larger effects…

Assesses the effectiveness of the juvenile justice system in preventing delinquency and rehabilitating delinquents. The six articles in this special issue also discuss status offenders and gender issues, examine the Chicago Area Project, and discuss the future of juvenile justice policy and research. (JAC)

This paper assesses current practices in the juvenile justice field against the backdrop of priorities set forth by Congress in the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974. Part 1 describes the legislative history and major provisions of the Act. The following sections present a concise review of current, general developments in…