The effectiveness of the juvenile justice system
| Date | 01 May 2005 |
| DOI | 10.1177/1466802505053497 |
| Author | David J. Smith |
| Published date | 01 May 2005 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
The effectiveness of the
juvenile justice system
DAVID J. SMITH
University of Edinburgh and London School of
Economics, UK
Abstract
Systematic assessment of the substantial research evidence on ‘what
works’ has shown that flagship programmes have a modest effect,
on average, in changing the future behaviour of young offenders.
Yet actual juvenile justice systems do not typically deliver the
modest benefits provided by programmes selected for evaluation,
and probably they never will. Comparative research shows that a
passive and lenient juvenile justice system may produce the same
level of youth offending as an active and punitive one. Evidence
that some programmes work should not be used as a platform for
expanding the scope and activity of the juvenile justice system.
Instead, the influence of juvenile justice on the future behaviour of
young offenders should be seen as just one element in the
evaluation of a system that will always struggle to meet a complex
range of partly conflicting objectives.
Key Words
behaviour change • effectiveness • evaluation • juvenile justice
In every country the juvenile justice system exists at a point of collision
between competing principles. Everywhere, mature adults are treated as
moral beings that make choices. These choices may often be ill-informed
and may emerge from an impoverished social context, yet western legal
traditions insist on treating most individuals in most circumstances as free
moral agents, and pin responsibility for their actions onto them. To do
otherwise would be patronizing and authoritarian: it would be a denial of
181
Criminal Justice
© 2005 SAGE Publications
London, Thousand Oaks
and New Delhi.
www.sagepublications.com
1466–8025; Vol: 5(2): 181–195
DOI: 10.1177/1466802505053497
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