NCJ Number
147099
Journal
Juvenile and Family Court Journal Volume: 45 Issue: 1 Dated: (1994) Pages: 15-26
Date Published
1994
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This study examined possible personal, familial, and societal causes of racial overrepresentation in the criminal justice system.
Abstract
Researchers selected a stratified random sample of 190 institutionalized delinquent youths. They were incarcerated in seven juvenile institutions in a southern State. The sample consisted of 154 males and 32 females and was 31.7 percent white and 68.3 percent black. The author developed a survey research instrument named Juvenile Risk and Needs Assessment. It focuses on patterns of association between race and psychosocial variables related to criminal behavior. The instrument included 80 demographic and psychosocial variables that the literature has connected to delinquent behavior. Black juveniles reported significantly less access to intermediary treatment resources such as psychiatric and drug treatment facilities, community treatment referrals, and placement in foster homes compared to white delinquents. Blacks were overrepresented in the more serious offense levels for both current and prior offenses. Whites were overrepresented in mental dysfunction measures of chronic alcohol and drug abuse, suicide attempts, institutionalization in psychiatric or drug treatment facilities, and running away from home. The differences in experiences by race raise questions about possible inequality in exposure to environmental factors related to criminal behavior and unequal access and referral to intermediate treatment services before incarceration. 5 tables and 6 references