NCJ Number
181176
Journal
Studies on Crime and Crime Prevention Volume: 8 Issue: 2 Dated: 1999 Pages: 189-209
Date Published
1999
Length
21 pages
Annotation
Using international data on self-reported juvenile delinquency and drug use from 12 countries, several correlates of drug use and drug trafficking have been identified.
Abstract
The analysis focuses on the International Self-Reported Delinquency Project (ISRD), because it contains over-and-above data on drug use, valuable information on delinquent involvement, and self-reported police contacts. Under the ISRD, research institutes in Belgium, England and Wales, Finland, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States have conducted comparative surveys on self-reported juvenile delinquency in their respective countries. The instrument and the methodology were standardized, along with the age groups covered (14 to 20 years). Overall, the ISRD findings support the view that drug use has an important impact on property crime and drug trafficking, although drug use does not always precede crime. On the other hand, no support was found for the assumption that the likelihood of police contacts has an impact on the prevalence of drug use. This analysis concludes that crime among users of hard drugs cannot be addressed through criminal justice responses alone. Methadone and heroin substitution programs may also be useful in this direction. Regarding the research agenda, standardized international data collection should be considered a high priority as a prerequisite to evaluating several policies. 9 figures, 25 notes, and 23 references