An Evaluation of a Juvenile Education Program in a State Penitentiary

Abstract

A controlled study of the impact of a juvenile education program on the recidivism rates of juveniles was performed. The program involved introducing the juveniles to the realities of prison life. No significant differences between experimental and control groups in the mean number of self-reported status or criminal offenses committed during the premeasure or follow-up period was found. A finding that youths categorized as more delinquent were affected differently by program attendance compared to youths categorized as less delinquent is offered as a tentative explanation of the conflicting results of prior studies of this type of intervention.