DIVERSION - A STUDY OF ALTERNATIVE PROCESSING PRACTICES - AN OVERVIEW OF INITIAL STUDY FINDINGS

• NCJ Number: 69306
• Author(s): D S ELLIOTT; B A KNOWLES
• Date Published: 1978
• Length: 11 pages
• Corporate Author: Behavioral Research Instit
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

THIS STUDY EVALUATED SCREENING (LECTURE AND RELEASE), DIVERSION, AND REFERRAL TO JUVENILE COURTS AS THREE ALTERNATIVE PROCESSING PRACTICES AVAILABLE TO POLICE DEALING WITH JUVENILE OFFENDERS.

Abstract

THE EMPHASIS WAS UPON DIVERSION WHICH PROVIDES FOR SOME TREATMENT OR SERVICE OUTSIDE THE JUSTICE SYSTEM, COMPARED TO SCREENING WHICH IMPLIES NO FURTHER LEGAL ACTION OR TREATMENT AND COURT REFERRAL WHICH PROVIDES FOR TREATMENT AND SERVICES WITHIN THE JUSTICE SYSTEM. COMPARATIVE STUDIES WERE CONDUCTED ON 245 YOUTHS LECTURED AND RELEASED IN BOULDER, COLO., SAN ANTONIO, TEX., AND KANSAS CITY, MO.; 277 DIVERTED; AND 244 REFERRED TO COURT. T TESTS, VARIANCE ANALYSES, MULTIPLE REGRESSION ANALYSES, AND A THEORETICAL MODEL SPECIFIED IN THE NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR THE PREVENTION OF DELINQUENCY WERE USED. OVERALL, FINDINGS SHOWED DISPOSITION TO BE A FACTOR IN RECIDIVISM, WITH INITIAL AND CHANGING LEVELS OF SELF-REPORTED DELINQUENT BEHAVIOR APPEARING TO BE THE BEST PREDICTORS OF RECIDIVISM, FOLLOWED BY THE NUMBER OF PRIOR CONTACTS WITH THE JUSTICE SYSTEM. YET, REARREST APPEARS TO BE MORE CLOSELY TIED TO ONGOING DELINQUENT BEHAVIOR THAN TO DISPOSITION DECISIONS OR PERCEIVED LABELING RESULTING FROM OFFICIAL PROCESSING. THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DISPOSITION AND RECIDIVISM DID VARY BY OFFENDER TYPE; FOR NORMAL YOUTH IN PARTICULAR THOSE WITH NO SCHOOL OR PARENTAL DIFFICULTIES OR NEGATIVE PEER PRESSURE), THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DISPOSITION AND RECIDIVISM WAS SIGNIFICANT, BUT THOSE DIVERTED HAD SUBSTANTIALLY HIGHER RATES OF RECIDIVISM THAN DID THOSE SCREENED. THE HYPOTHESIS THAT DIVERSION LEADS TO LOWER RATES OF SUBSEQUENT DELINQUENT BEHAVIOR THAN TRADITIONAL PROCESSING WAS NOT SUPPORTED. MOREOVER, THE HYPOTHESIS THAT THE DIVERSION ALTERNATIVE RESULTS IN MORE FAVORABLE CHANGE IN PERCEIVED OPPORTUNITIES FOR EDUCATIONAL AND OCCUPATIONAL GOALS, RELATIONSHIPS WITH PARENTS, ATTITUDES TOWARDS SCHOOL, AND FEELINGS OF ALIENATION WAS NOT SUPPORTED. THE IMPACT OF SERVICES APPEARED TO BE UNIFORMLY NEGATIVE ON SUBSEQUENT ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR AND PARTICULARLY UPON PARENT-YOUTH RELATIONSHIPS.