Law-Related Education as a Delinquency Prevention Strategy - A Three-Year Evaluation of the Impact of LRE on Students

• NCJ Number: 99991
• Author(s): G Johnson; R Hunter
• Date Published: 1985
• Length: 129 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
• Corporate Author: Ctr for Action Research, Inc
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: This report is adapted from Law-Related Education Evaluation Project Final Report, Phase II, Year 3.

Annotation

This 1981-83 evaluation of law-related education (LRE) programs and classes in California, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, and North Carolina assessed LRE's impact on students' law-abiding behavior and its known correlates.

Abstract

To obtain data on both outcomes and LRE implementation processes, questionnaires were administered to 1,600 LRE students and 900 comparison subjects before and after program completion. Evaluators also observed classrooms, training workshops, conferences, and meetings. Interviews were conducted with educational administrators, teachers, trainers, and resource persons who participated in LRE instruction. In the main impact study, data were obtained from 61 LRE classes and 44 comparison classes in 32 schools. Topics in the questionnaires were behavior (self-reported delinquency), attitudes toward deviance and personal violence, perceptions of police and judges, and peer relationships. The data indicate that LRE can improve students' attitudes, perceptions, and behavior if the programs are managed and conducted properly. In the most effective programs, LRE students had better delinquency records than control and comparison subjects for as long as 16 months after completion of the course. Characteristics of effective programs are described. Tabular data and 42 references.