Preventing and Reducing Juvenile Delinquency

Dr. James C. (Buddy) Howell is a Senior Research Associate with the National Gang Center, in Tallahassee, Florida, where he has worked for over twenty years. He formerly worked at the U.S. Department of Justice for 23 years, mostly as director of research and program development in the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. He has published over 50 works on youth and street gangs, and a similar number on juvenile justice and delinquency prevention, and seven books on both topics. His gang publication topics include street gang history; gang homicides; drug trafficking; gangs in schools; hybrid gangs; myths about gangs; risk factors; gang problem trends; gang history in the United States; and what works in preventing gang activity, combating gangs, and reducing gang crime. He is very active in helping states and localities reform their juvenile justice systems and use evidence-based programs, and in working with these entities to address youth gang problems in a balanced approach.

"This accessible handbook from a passionate advocate of giving youth ′room to reform, to keep their life chances intact′ will be valued by students and practitioners of juvenile justice, as well as lawmakers, policymakers, and social services research and development specialists."—Youth Today: The Newspaper on Youth Work

• PrefacePART I: The Historical Context of Current Juvenile Justice System Policies and Practices1. Superpredators and Other Myths About Juvenile Delinquency2. Moral Panic Over Juvenile Delinquency3. Juvenile Delinquency TrendsPART II: The Research Base on Juvenile Offenders and Gangs4. A Theory of Juvenile Deilinquency and Gang Involvement5. Juvenile Offender Careers6. Youth Gangs7. Effective Programs for Preventing and Reducing Youth Gang ProblemsPART III: Programmatic and Policy Responses to Juvenile Delinquency8. Principles and Characteristics of Best Practice Programs9. Effective Prevention and Rehabilitation Programs10. The Comprehensive Strategy Framework: An Illustration11. What Doesn′t Work in Preventing and Reducing Juvenile Delinquency12. Transfer of Juveniles to the Crimnal Justice SystemConcluding ObservationsAppendix: Two Model Assessment InstrumentsCredits and SourcesGlossaryReferencesIndex