Partying,Cruising, and Hanging in the Streets: Gangs,Routine Activities,and Delinquency and Violence in Chicago, 1959–1962

Objectives

Examine relationships between routine activities, character contests in the form of “signifying,” and general delinquency and fighting in a street gang context.

Methods

Samejima’s (Estimation of latent ability using a response pattern of graded scores. Psychometrika monograph supplement 17. Psychometric Society, Richmond, VA, Retrieved 10 Aug 2011, from http://www.psychometrika.org/journal/online/MN17.pdf, 1969) graded response models and multilevel ordinal logistic regression models are estimated using data from Short and Strodtbeck (Group process and gang delinquency. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1965) study of street gangs in Chicago, 1959–1962. The primary sample consists of 490 boys representing 10 black gangs, 4 white gangs, 9 black lower-class groups, 4 white lower-class groups, 2 black middle-class groups, and 2 white middle-class groups.

Results

Unstructured and unsupervised socializing with peers significantly increased the likelihood of delinquency among the boys and explained a significant portion of the group-level gang effect. In addition, the more time the boys spent hanging in the streets and attending parties, the more likely they were to participate in signifying, which, in turn, increased their risk of fighting.

Conclusions

Findings provide evidence that gangs contribute to delinquency partly through their effect on the routine activities of members. Findings also suggest that signifying is an important mechanism by which unstructured and unsupervised socializing with peers leads to violence.     

Seasonal Variation in Violent Victimization: Opportunity and the Annual Rhythm of the School Calendar

Objectives

This study draws on an underused source of data on seasonality—victim surveys—to assess whether violent crime occurs with greater frequency during summer months or whether it simply becomes known to police more often, and to examine the extent to which seasonal patterns in violent crime are differentiated based on victim characteristics and location of crime.

Methods

Data used come from the 1993–2008 National Crime Victimization Survey. Time series regression models are estimated to describe seasonal differences in violent crime victimization and reporting rates.

Results

Seasonal trends in youth violence stand in contrast to the trends for young and older adults, primarily due to their high risk of victimization at and near school. No evidence of seasonality is found in the extent to which serious violence becomes known to the police. However, simple assault is significantly more likely to come to the attention of the police during the summer months, primarily due to increases in the reporting of youth violence.

Conclusions

Our findings confirm some of the previous work on seasonal patterns in violent crime, but also show that these patterns vary across age groups, locations, and type of violence.     

Human trafficking for labour exploitation: the results of a two-phase systematic review mapping the European evidence base and synthesising key scientific research evidence

Objectives

Our objectives were (1) to systematically map the contours of the European evidence base on labour trafficking, identifying its key characteristics, coverage, gaps, strengths and weaknesses and (2) to synthesise key scientific research.

Methods

We took a two-phase approach: a systematic map followed by a detailed synthesis of key scientific research evidence. Our search strategy included 15 databases, hand searches of additional journals, backwards searches, snowball searches and expert recommendations. We identified and screened 6106 records, mapped 152 and synthesised eight.

Results

Overall, the literature was limited and fragmented. Reports produced by official agencies dominated; academic authorship and peer-reviewed outputs were comparatively rare. Few publications met minimum scientific standards. Qualitative designs outweighed quantitative ones. Publications typically described trafficking’s problem profile and/or discussed interventions; they rarely assessed trafficking’s impacts or evaluated interventions. Even among the key scientific research, the quality of evidence was variable and often low. Particular weaknesses included poor methods reporting, unclear or imprecise results and conclusions not properly grounded in the data. The synthesised studies were all exploratory, also sharing other design features. Common themes identified included: poor treatment of victims; diversity of sectors affected and commonalities among victims; inadequacies of current responses; and barriers to interventions.

Conclusions

There is a lack of high-quality studies into European labour trafficking. Methodological opacity, insufficient rigour and publication in non-indexed locations impede the identification, assessment and synthesis of evidence. Adherence to higher reporting standards would further the field’s development and particular research gaps should be addressed.

     

Examining Systematic Crime Reporting Bias Across Three Immigrant Generations: Prevalence,Trends, and Divergence in Self-Reported and Official Reported Arrests

Objective

Mounting evidence reveals that foreign-born, first generation immigrants have significantly lower levels of criminal involvement compared to their US-born, second and third-plus generation peers. This study investigates whether this finding is influenced by differential crime reporting practices by testing for systematic crime reporting bias across first, second, and third-plus generation immigrants.

Methods

This study draws on data from the Pathways to Desistance Study, a longitudinal investigation of the transition from adolescence to young adulthood among a sample of serious adolescent offenders. Self-reported and official reports of arrest are compared longitudinally across ten waves of data spanning 7 years from adolescence into young adulthood for nearly 1300 adjudicated males and females.

Results

This study reveals a high degree of correspondence between self-reports of arrest and official reports of arrest when compared within groups distinguished by immigrant generation. Longitudinal patterns of divergence, disaggregated by under-reporting and over-reporting, in self- and official-reports of arrest indicated a very high degree of similarity regardless of immigrant generation. We found no evidence of systematic crime reporting bias among foreign-born, first generation immigrants compared to their US-born peers.

Conclusions

First generation immigrants are characterized by lower levels of offending that are not attributable to a differential tendency to under-report their involvement in crime.

     

When crime prevention harms: a review of systematic reviews

Objectives

In a series of important scholarly works, Joan McCord made the case for the criminological community to take seriously harmful effects arising from individual-based crime prevention programs. Building on these works, two key questions are of central interest to this paper: What has been the state of research on harmful effects of these crime prevention programs since McCord’s works? And what are the theoretical, methodological, and programmatic characteristics of individual-based crime prevention programs with reported harmful effects?

Methods

This paper reports on the first empirical review of harmful effects of crime prevention programs, drawing upon 15 Campbell Collaboration systematic reviews. Altogether, 574 experimental and quasi-experimental studies (published and unpublished) with 645 independent effect sizes were reviewed.

Results

A total of 22 harmful effects from 22 unique studies of individual-based crime prevention programs were identified. Almost all of the studies have been reported since 1990, all but 2 were carried out in the United States, and two-thirds can be considered unpublished. The studies covered a wide range of interventions, from anti-bullying programs at schools, to second responder interventions involving police, to the Scared Straight program for juvenile delinquents, with more than half taking place in criminal justice settings. Boot camps and drug courts accounted for the largest share of studies with harmful effects.

Conclusions

Theory failure, implementation failure, and deviancy training were identified as the leading explanations for harmful effects of crime prevention programs, and they served as key anchors for a more focused look at implications for theory and policy. Also, the need for programs to be rigorously evaluated and monitored is evident, which will advance McCord’s call for attention to safety and efficacy.     

Detention Short of Arrest For Questioning in England: An Update

This research sampled 163 nations of the world to determine the use and non-use of capital punishment for 1980–85. The first conclusion was that the majority of the nations do have a legal device to administer capital punishment (77% with Yes; N = 126). The 22 nations who executed averaged 4.2 executions, per year. When the other nations are factored in, the average is 1.57 “official executions” per year (N = 163). Many nations have the legal device to execute, but few do. The top nations reporting were South Africa with 111, and Mauritius with 25 (per year 1980–85).

The average age for execution for the 42 reporting nations was 18. The United States of America was the only nation reporting for less than 16 years old. The following “methods of execution” were reported:

1.

Hanging (N = 26, 57%)

2.

Shooting (N = 11, 24%)

3.

Beheading (N = 7, 15%)

Nations also excluded from the death penalty for the following reasons:

1.

Mental Illness

2.

Juveniles

3.

Pregnant Woman

Only 7 nations reported “open” or “public” executions.     

Mentoring programs to affect delinquency and associated outcomes of youth at risk: A comprehensive meta-analytic review

Objectives

To conduct a meta-analytic review of selective and indicated mentoring interventions for effects for youth at risk on delinquency and key associated outcomes (aggression, drug use, academic functioning). We also undertook the first systematic evaluation of intervention implementation features and organization and tested for effects of theorized key processes of mentor program effects.

Methods

Campbell Collaboration review inclusion criteria and procedures were used to search and evaluate the literature. Criteria included a sample defined as at risk for delinquency due to individual behavior such as aggression or conduct problems or environmental characteristics such as residence in a high-crime community. Studies were required to be random assignment or strong quasi-experimental design. Of 163 identified studies published from 1970–2011, 46 met criteria for inclusion.

Results

Mean effects sizes were significant and positive for each outcome category (ranging from d?=?0.11 for academic achievement to d?=?0.29 for aggression). Heterogeneity in effect sizes was noted for all four outcomes. Stronger effects resulted when mentor motivation was professional development but not by other implementation features. Significant improvements in effects were found when advocacy and emotional support mentoring processes were emphasized.

Conclusions

This popular approach has significant impact on delinquency and associated outcomes for youth at risk for delinquency. While evidencing some features may relate to effects, the body of literature is remarkably lacking in details about specific program features and procedures. This persistent state of limited reporting seriously impedes understanding about how mentoring is beneficial and ability to maximize its utility.     

Can “disciplined passion” overcome the cynical view? An empirical inquiry of evaluator influence on police crime prevention program outcomes

Objectives

Investigate the degree and nature of influence that researchers have in police crime prevention programs and whether a high degree of influence is associated with biased reporting of results.

Methods

Meta-analytic inquiry of experimental and quasi-experimental studies (n?=?42), drawn from four Campbell Collaboration systematic reviews of leading police crime prevention strategies: problem-oriented policing, ??hot spots?? policing, ??pulling levers?? policing, and street-level drug enforcement.

Results

Larger program effects are not associated with studies with higher involvement on the part of the evaluator (e.g., assisting in strategy design, monitoring implementation, overcoming implementation problems).

Conclusions

This study does not find support for the cynical view, which holds that researchers have a personal stake in the program or are pressured to report positive results. Importantly, the evaluator??s involvement in the implementation of the program may be a necessary condition of successfully executed police experiments in complex field settings.     

Feasibility of a computerized intervention for offenders with substance use disorders: a research note

Objectives

Despite evidence that treatment is effective in reducing recidivism among inmates with substance use problems, scarce resources mean that few of those in need of treatment actually receive it. Computerized substance abuse interventions could be used to expand access to treatment in prisons without placing an undue burden on resources. The major aim of the study was to compare treatment conditions in terms of their service utilization, skills acquisition, and treatment satisfaction.

Methods

The study recruited men and women with substance use disorders from 10 prisons in 4 states. In an open label clinical trial, 494 subjects were randomly assigned either to the Experimental condition, a computerized drug treatment intervention, the Therapeutic Education System (TES; n?=?249), or to the Control condition, Standard Care (n?=?245). Chi-square tests compared groups on categorical variables and independent samples t tests were used for interval level continuous variables.

Results

Initial evidence demonstrated: (1) comparable group rates of session attendance and high rates of TES module completion for experimental subjects; (2) comparable group gains in the development of coping skills; and (3) a more favorable view of TES than of Standard Care.

Conclusions

Collectively, these results show that a computerized intervention, such as TES, can be implemented successfully in prison. Given the barriers to the delivery of substance abuse treatment typically encountered in correctional settings, computerized interventions have the potential to fill a significant treatment gap and are particularly well suited to inmates with mild to moderate substance use disorders who often are not treated.     

Assessing programs designed to improve outcomes for children exposed to violence: Results from nine randomized controlled trials

Objectives

The study tests whether participation in interventions offered by a subset of sites from the National Safe Start Promising Approaches for Children Exposed to Violence initiative improved outcomes for children relative to controls.

Methods

The study pools data from the nine Safe Start sites that randomized families to intervention and control groups, using a within-site block randomization strategy based on child age at baseline. Caregiver-reported outcomes, assessed at baseline, 6 and 12 months, included caregiver personal problems, caregiver resource problems, parenting stress, child and caregiver victimization, child trauma symptoms, child behavior problems, and social-emotional competence.

Results

Results revealed no measurable intervention impact in intent-to-treat analyses at either 6- or 12-month post-baseline. In 6-month as-treated analyses, a medium to high intervention dose was associated with improvement on two measures of child social-emotional competence: cooperation and assertion. Overall, there is no reliable evidence of significant site-to-site effect variability, even in the two cases of significant intervention effect.

Conclusions

Since families in both the intervention and control groups received some degree of case management and both groups improved over time, it may be advantageous to explore the potential impacts of crisis and case management separately from mental health interventions. It may be that, on average, children in families whose basic needs are being attended to improve substantially on their own.     

Applying the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) to studies of mental health provision for juvenile offenders: a research note

The degree of reporting transparency in randomised controlled trials (RCTs) is an important factor when the validity of any results is being considered. The use of the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) guidelines has improved the reporting standards of RCTs in many healthcare journals, but these guidelines have yet to be adopted universally. In this study, we applied the CONSORT Statement to RCTs identified from a systematic review of mental health provisions for juvenile offenders. We assessed the number of CONSORT items reported in each trial and investigated the extent of endorsement by journal editors. The findings showed that some items were fully endorsed (e.g., the aim of the study) whereas other items, such as sample size estimations, were not presented in any of the trials. A minority of journals supported the use of the CONSORT Statement in their journals’ instructions for authors. The overall reporting standard for this sample of trials was, therefore, mixed. Comparisons with trials conducted in other disciplines are discussed, and suggestions for improving reporting standards are presented.

Coalitions for a common purpose: managing relationships in experiments

Objectives

To discuss the character of relationships between operational and research staff and the necessary conditions for successful experiments.

Methods

A review of research and experience in the conduct of experiments, especially randomized controlled trials, examining the foundations for success, issues in maintaining cooperation with operational staff, implementation and leadership issues.

Results

The fundamental issue in successful experiments is the relationship between the operational and research entities, which most often resemble a coalition of temporary common interests rather than a partnership between parties with long-term common goals.

Conclusion

Experiments require close cooperation between the parties because of the need for maintenance and monitoring. Researchers who use field trials have solved many of the common problems faced by those embarking on experiments and those who do so will be rewarded by the quality of their findings. Relationships which may be characterised as temporary coalitions for a common purpose may, under the right conditions, ultimately mature into true research partnerships.     

Bank on it

… EU social legislation is an un‐stoppable tide, which has flowed up English estuaries and looks set to breach remaining defences. If you can not beat it, you have to join it, and go with the flow … the Social Chapter is alive and well and very much directing its attention towards the rights of employees and duties of employers.

Lord Denning ¹ 1 See www.learnedcounsel.com/eclaw.html (accessed 3 July 2007).      

Effectiveness of school-based programs to reduce bullying: a commentary

Objectives

Recent decades have seen a focus on intervention programs to reduce school bullying, in light of the severe negative consequences of such behavior. A recent meta-analysis by Ttofi and Farrington (Journal of Experimental Criminology 7: 27?C56, 2011) provided encouraging findings in terms of some significant reductions in bullying and victimization achieved by many programs. They also report analyses of effect sizes associated with specific program elements and design features of the interventions. While this is an important step forward, we critique some of the strong policy implications which they draw from these latter analyses.

Methods

We discuss four important areas to substantiate this critique: analytical procedure, definitional issues, historical issues, and recent empirical data. As context, we use two particular program elements described by Ttofi and Farrington, namely use of disciplinary measures and work with peers, and one design feature, namely age of pupils.

Results

The findings for the program elements and design feature examined are complex and do not justify strong policy implications at this stage.

Conclusions

We conclude with suggestions for future research directions.     

Self-injury group psychotherapy intervention for young offenders: a pilot study

Objective: Self-injury (SI) is a significant and growing problem with the prison estate and a particularly acute issue with young offenders. Despite this, there are no evidence-based interventions for Young Offenders with SI difficulties. The Self-Injury Group Psychotherapy Intervention (SIGPI) was developed to target this.

Method: Drawing on existing evidence, the group was developed and piloted on a sample of 12 male Young Offenders (mean age 19.85 years) in custody with a history of SI. Participants were measured on observable SI behaviour, SI thoughts and urges and psychological distress. A within subject design was utilised with measures at baseline, 6 months and 1 year.

Results: At 12 months follow-up, a significant reduction in SI acts, time spent on SI monitoring, severity of urges and difficulty resisting SI. Psychological distress was also reduced.

Conclusions: SIGPI could be a potentially promising intervention and further investigation into its efficacy is warranted.     

“Fixed” Sentencing: The Effect on Imprisonment Rates Over Time

Objective

Sentencing guidelines, statutory presumptive sentencing, determinate sentencing, truth in sentencing, and three strikes are important components of the criminal justice system. The main purpose behind a relatively-fixed sentence is to remove judicial discretion by insuring that convicted felons receive a reasonably-assumed sentence depending on the crime committed. The current study assessed shifts in year-to-year changes in incarceration rates within all 50 states from the years 1965–2008 due to the adoption of sentencing reforms.

Methods

The study tests two competing theories, a normative theory and critical theory of the expected effects of reforms on imprisonment. Data was analyzed using panel regression with unit-specific fixed effects, conditional change scores, panel corrected standard errors, and a new measure of reforms.

Results

This study, possibly due to differences in model specification, ran counter to a number of previous studies and suggests some “front-end” sentencing reforms and “back-end” release changes are, on average, related to changes in imprisonment.

Conclusions

The study concluded, that when significant, reforms increased more than decreased prison growth in comparison to indeterminate sentencing. Additionally, the analysis concludes that changes in release mechanisms and parole decision structures are driving increased growth more than changes in sentencing structures.     

Using Space–Time Analysis to Evaluate Criminal Justice Programs: An Application to Stop-Question-Frisk Practices

Objectives

Effects of place-based criminal justice interventions extend across both space and time, yet methodological approaches for evaluating these programs often do not accommodate the spatiotemporal dimension of the data. This paper presents an example of a bivariate spatiotemporal Ripley’s K-function, which is increasingly employed in the field of epidemiology to analyze spatiotemporal event data. Advantages of this technique over the adapted Knox test are discussed.

Methods

The study relies on x–y coordinates of the exact locations of stop-question-frisk (SQF) and crime incident events in New York City to assess the deterrent effect of SQFs on crime across space at a daily level.

Results

The findings suggest that SQFs produce a modest reduction in crime, which extends over a three-day period. Diffusion of benefits is observed within 300 feet from the location of the SQF, but these effects decay as distance from the SQF increases.

Conclusions

A bivariate spatiotemporal Ripley’s K-function is a promising approach to evaluating place-based crime prevention interventions, and may serve as a useful tool to guide program development and implementation in criminology.

     

Women Behind the Scenes in the Performing Arts

Within Ireland, interest in strategically supporting young people's participation in the arts has increased. Additionally, awareness of the Internet's potential for promoting engagement with the arts has grown. Addressing national directives and local needs assessments, South Dublin County Council's Arts Office initiated NOISE South Dublin (http://www.noisesouthdublin.com), an interactive Web site based on Australia Council's NOISE project (http://www.noise.net), to promote the creative development of young people in the county. This article presents the practical challenges and potential of youth arts Web-based programs for harnessing the creative engagement of youth. It concludes that the Internet is only useful if it expands online engagement offline.     

Sustainability of the effects of multisystemic therapy for juvenile delinquents in The Netherlands: effects on delinquency and recidivism

Objectives

The present study focused on the sustainability of the effects of Multisystemic Therapy (MST) on delinquency and recidivism.

Methods

A sample of 256 juveniles with severe and persistent antisocial behavior were randomly assigned to MST (147) and Treatment As Usual (TAU) (109) condition. Pre-test assessment took place before the start of MST/control group treatment. Post-test assessment took place at 6 months after termination of the program. Delinquency (parent and adolescent reported) was assessed 6 months after termination of the treatment. Official judicial data were collected to assess recidivism, with a mean length of follow-up of 3.06 years. ANCOVAs and survival analyses were used to test the effectiveness of MST.

Results

The multi-informant data showed that MST is effective in diminishing delinquent behavior as reported by adolescents and parents, with d’s larger than at post-test assessment immediately after ending of the intervention. The official judicial data, however, suggest that there are no differences between MST and TAU in recidivism. Few and inconsistent moderator effects were found.

Conclusions

According to parent and adolescent reports, the beneficial effects of MST were sustained at the follow-up. This was not supported by official data. These results stress the importance of using multi-informant data on delinquency, as each source of information has its own advantages and disadvantages.