Uggen,
Christopher and Melissa Thompson.
2001. “Prevention: Juveniles as Potential Offenders.” Encyclopedia of Crime and Justice.
INTRODUCTION
If
a program prevents the first delinquent act, the social harm associated with
subsequent delinquency can be avoided. To deliver on this promise, however,
prevention programs must be effective and targeted to those most likely to
offend. Evaluation research has challenged the effectiveness of prevention
efforts, prompting one careful reviewer to conclude:
Prevention projects don’t work and they waste
money, violate the rights of juveniles and their families, inspire bizarre
suggestions and programs, and fail to affect the known correlates of urban
delinquency…it is time to get out of the business of attempting to prevent
delinquency (Lundman 1993:245).
In
contrast to this appraisal, another careful examination concludes that such
efforts:
show promise
in their potential for helping participants and having positive spillover
effects for other members of society (Karoly et al.
1998:107).
The
differences in these assessments reflect the different programs, outcomes, and
evaluation procedures examined. This entry critically examines prevention
efforts and their evaluation, and identifies the most promising new approaches.
Early attempts, such as the 1825 opening of the New York House of Refuge and
sixteenth century British Poor Laws, aimed to prevent delinquency by housing a
population we would today characterize as “at-risk youth.” Since this time
alternative approaches have emerged, including individualized treatment, early
childhood intervention, and programs targeting adolescents, low-income
communities, and youth in the juvenile justice system.