Girls Delinquency And Juvenile Justice

This revision of an award-winning text is the first book devoted solely to the topic of female delinquency and the treatment of young girls by the juvenile justice system. It sheds new light on the special problems of delinquent girls by taking into account what it is like to grow up female in a patriarchal society. Based on extensive and original research, the text provides compelling firsthand accounts from girls as well as solid research and theory.

The new edition of Girls, Delinquency, and Juvenile Justice combines cutting-edge research and expanded coverage of girls’ delinquency, including coverage of girls in gangs and the sexual trafficking of girls, to provide students with an accessible, up-to-date, and globally oriented textbook. Including global perspectives and coverage of cutting-edge research, this is the only textbook to deal exclusively with girls and crime Offers expanded coverage of girls in gangs and emerging literature on the sexual trafficking of girls Pulls together and analyzes all existing literature on the subject of female delinquency Brings to light new research on a wide range of issues, including the conditions of confinement for girls incarcerated in juvenile jails and prisons, Latina girls, and gender responsive programming Explores the moral panic around "violent," "bad," and "mean" girls

This book offers an ethnographic study of the lives of girls in the juvenile justice system. Based on rich, narrative accounts, the girls at the center of the study are viewed as confronted with the power of simultaneous race, class, and gender hierarchies. Through this framework, we see how the girls navigate this challenge by seeking status in their everyday lives: in their families; juvenile justice institutions; and neighborhood organizations, including gangs. Through analyzing the ways that the girls strive for higher social status, this book provokes debate about how policies and programs may be creatively rethought to incorporate this pursuit. Girls and Juvenile Justice offers a glimpse into the hearts, minds, and souls of adolescent girls. It will be of great interest for scholars of criminal justice, sociology, women’s studies, and social-psychology.

From 1991 to 2000, arrests of girls increased more than arrests of boys for most offenses. By 2004, girls accounted for 30% of all juvenile arrests. Resilience, the psychological ability to successfully cope with severe stress and negative events, is a widely studied concept that has important implications for the development of delinquency prevention and intervention programs. Scientists still cannot completely explain why some children are resilient to the negative events in their life and others are not. Furthermore, factors associated with resilience may not be the same for both genders. This report examines a select number of factors that research suggests may ¿protect¿ girls who are at risk for becoming delinquent. Illustrations.

Traditionally, delinquent girls were considered an anomaly, a rare phenomenon attracting little scholarly notice. Today, more than one in four youth offenders is female, and researchers and practitioners alike are quickly turning their attention and resources to address this challenging situation. Delinquent Girls: Contexts, Relationships, and Adaptation synthesizes what is known about girls involved in delinquent behavior and their experiences at different points in the juvenile justice system. This breakthrough volume adds to the understanding of this population by offering empirical analysis not only of how these behaviors develop but also about what is being done to intervene. Employing multiple theoretical models, qualitative and quantitative data sources, law enforcement records, and insights across disciplines, leading scholars review causes and correlates; the roles of family and peers; psychological and legal issues; policy changes resulting in more arrests of young women; and evidence-based prevention and intervention strategies. Each chapter covers its subject in depth, providing theory, findings, and future directions. Important topics addressed include: Narrowing the gender gap – trends in girls’ delinquency. Girls at the intersection of juvenile justice, criminal justice, and child welfare. Trauma exposure, mental health issues, and girls’ delinquency. Beyond the stereotypes: girls in gangs. Intervention programs for at-risk and court-involved girls. Implications for practice and policy. With its broad scope and solution-oriented focus, Delinquent Girls: Contexts, Relationships, and Adaptation is a must-have volume for researchers, professionals, graduate students, and social policy experts in clinical child and school psychology, social work, juvenile justice, criminology, developmental psychology, and sociology.

Over the past decade and a half, girls’ involvement in the juvenile justice system has increased. Yet the topic remains under-studied among criminologists. The Delinquent Girl is a “state-of-the-field” evaluation that identifies and analyzes girls who become delinquent, the kinds of crimes they commit and the reasons they commit them. The distinguished academics and practitioners who contributed to this volume provide an overview of the research on girls’ delinquency, discuss policy implications and point to areas where further research is critically needed.

A compilation of journal articles on the female offender written by leading researchers in the field of criminology and women's studies. Reveals the complex worlds females in the criminal justice system must often negotiate.