Many state policy makers are increasingly concerned about the ever-growing proportion of their budget that is devoted to building and operating State prisons, for a number of reasons: competing demands for State funds, e.g., higher education and the environment; prison costs are not seen as adding to a State's capital infrastructure; and the permanence of prison facilities, which raises the concern that sentencing and parole release decisions will be changed to ensure that all available facilities will remain full. Many State officials are beginning to recognize that wise investments in early prevention are effective ways to reduce crime and the need for future prison cells. In addition, surveys have shown that a large block of voters also are in favor of spending money on prevention rather than on prisons. However, only a small number of potential intervention strategies have been subjected to rigorous evaluation. It is important that corrections researchers develop and test a wider variety of theories of delinquency prevention and convert their findings into effective programs for serving at-risk youths. References