Research and Evaluation

Since 1999, OJJDP has used TYP funds to support a number of research and evaluation activities designed to provide empirical evidence about juvenile justice and delinquency prevention policies and practices and their impact on tribal youth. In developing guidelines for TYP research and evaluation, OJJDP convened an American Indian focus group. This group developed three principles to guide TYP-funded research and evaluation activities. The group determined that research and evaluation should:

• Provide useful, practical results that are relevant to the parties who are the focus of the research.
  
  
• Involve local community members in decisionmaking and implementation activities.
  
  
• Acknowledge and respect native customs, traditions, values, and history.

Tribal research and evaluation activities address a range of issues relating to juvenile justice and delinquency prevention efforts in tribal communities. (See An Overview of Selected Tribal Research and Evaluation Activities for a description of selected projects.)

OJJDP also supports two new research programs designed to help AI/AN communities develop and implement juvenile delinquency programs and improve tribal juvenile justice systems. These programs are described in the sections that follow.

The Tribal Youth Field-Initiated Research and Evaluation Program

The Tribal Youth Field-Initiated Research and Evaluation Program supports projects that focus on tribal youth and address child abuse and neglect, substance abuse, and indigenous approaches to juvenile justice. One such project, Understanding the Causes of and Responses to Pueblo Youth Crime and Violence, will award $200,000 to Sandoval Indian Pueblos, Inc., a consortium of five pueblos in Sandoval County, NM, to explore the causes of and responses to youth substance abuse and crime. The study will use secondary and archival data sources, youth surveys, and interviews of tribe members to assess the nature of juvenile delinquency in the pueblos. Another project, the Anishinaabek Juvenile Justice Study, will award approximately $200,000 to the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa to conduct a formative evaluation of the juvenile justice system on the Red Cliff Reservation. The evaluation will focus on the reservation’s tribal court, tribal substance abuse programs, and Indian Child Welfare program.

The Longitudinal Study of Tribal Youth Risk and Resiliency

In 2002, OJJDP began supporting the Longitudinal Study of Tribal Youth Risk and Resiliency Using the Community Readiness Model (the Longitudinal Study), which will examine risk and protective factors for juvenile delinquency within the unique cultural and historical context of a tribal community. By emphasizing cultural and historical factors, the Longitudinal Study will significantly improve knowledge concerning individual, family, community, school, and peer factors that affect delinquency and resiliency among tribal youth. It will also promote the development of culturally appropriate research methods for use with tribal populations. The first 2 years of the Longitudinal Study will consist of a feasibility study (to plan for the actual longitudinal study). After the feasibility study has been completed, and depending on the availability of funds, OJJDP anticipates supporting the Longitudinal Study for up to 5 more years.

In April 2002, OJJDP awarded approximately $650,000 in the form of a cooperative agreement (for a 2-year project and budget period) to Colorado State University’s Tri-Ethnic Center for Prevention Research to administer and conduct the feasibility study. OJJDP will be actively involved in this important research project through close communication with the grantee, participation in initial site visits to eligible tribes being considered for participation in the study, and followup visits to participating sites.

OJJDP's Tribal Youth Initiatives	OJJDP Bulletin • May 2003