The authors identify four major research questions that must be resolved before there can be full understanding of the relationship between drugs and juvenile delinquency: (1) What is the degree of association between illicit drug use and delinquency? (2) What is the usual time order of occurrence; does drug use usually precede delinquent behavior or vice versa? (3) What is the effect on the drug use/delinquency relationship when variables antecedent to both are statistically controlled, i.e., testing for spuriousness? and (4) Can a meaningful typology of drug use and delinquency be developed, and then, can effective predictors of the types be discovered? The respondents for this study were 2,750 adolescents drawn from 97 youth drug-abuse treatment programs from 37 States. All subjects were 18 or younger, 61 percent were males, and 7 out of 10 white. Study findings highlight a significant question with implications for both social policy and the delivery of services: What should be done with these young people? Members of the helping professions must devise innovative and effective primary prevention, early identification, and intervention strategies. From a social policy standpoint, it is essential that individuals at risk of being costly to society be assisted in developing into productive citizens. Tables, references