The introductory chapter addresses the definition and extent of delinquency, followed by a chapter on the history of juvenile justice. The chapter on biological and psychological explanations of delinquency provides an overview of the various biological and psychological theories of delinquency throughout history. Another chapter considers sociological explanations of delinquency. A chapter on juvenile gangs discusses the definition of gangs, early and modern gang research, gang characteristics and behavior, and intervention with gangs. The chapter on identification and prediction addresses juvenile offender classification, prediction methods, and offense history and criminal careers. In discussing police and juveniles, a chapter reviews the police role, police attitudes toward juveniles, youth attitudes toward police, police discretion, the organization of police work with juveniles, and police use of excessive force with juveniles. After chapters dealing with the juvenile court process and corrections, the concluding chapter considers future directions in juvenile justice, with attention to court philosophy, capital punishment, and drugs. 650 references, subject index, name index, case index.