NCJ Number
85301
Journal
Juvenile and Family Court Journal Volume: 33 Issue: 2 Dated: (May 1982) Pages: 33-44
Date Published
1982
Length
12 pages
Annotation
The article examines reasons for incarceration of female delinquents and the social experiences of imprisoned female delinquents.
Abstract
Double standards dominate juvenile and adult justice as well as male and female justice. Almost three-quarters of females under age 18 who are arrested and incarcerated are charged with status offenses such as disobeying their parents, promiscuity, and running away. These are acts for which adults cannot be charged and for which boys are seldom charged. Another study revealed that 90 percent of the girls in one institution were defined as status offenders. Most of the females caught in the juvenile justice system are poor; many are from racial minorities. These adolescents share the needs of all adolescents, but they are confined, in part, as a result of the lack of realistic laws or standards for dealing with juvenile status offenders. The paternalistic nature of the police and juvenile courts perpetuates the double standard of behavior for males and females, particularly where sexual behavior is concerned. The lives of incarcerated females become circumscribed by the custodial and control manipulations of institutions. Research has also indicated that girls fare worse than boys in institutions because they stay longer for less harmful acts and are confined because there are no other places for them. Educational programs and vocational training are less adequate programs than for boys. In addition, the medical and emotional problems of institutionalized girls are often untended. Other problems are the emphasis on custody, the use of tranquilizers as social control mechanisms, and the creation of enormous psychological burdens about sex. An emphasis on preventive care and the development of alternative programs is needed. Reference notes are provided.