STUDY ONE EXAMINED 843 YOUTHS WHOSE LAST RELEASE FROM STATE SCHOOLS OR CENTERS OCCURRED DURING THE PERIOD FROM JANUARY 1, 1971 THROUGH JUNE 30, 1974 (THE SIX-MONTHS PRIOR TO WHEN THE DIVISION FOR YOUTH ASSUMED RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE FACILITIES ON JULY 1, 1971) AND WHO WERE 15 YEARS OLD AT THE TIME. THE STUDY FOCUSED ON THE THREE-YEAR PERIOD AFTER LAST RELEASE. STUDY TWO EXAMINED A RANDOM SAMPLE OF 318 FROM THE POPULATION OF YOUTHS WITH A RELEASE FROM A STATE SCHOOL OR CENTER DURING THE PERIOD JULY 1, 1971 THROUGH MARCH 31, 1973. ALL AGE GROUPS WERE INCLUDED. THIS STUDY FOCUSED ON POST-RELEASE HAPPENINGS AFTER A YOUTH'S 'INITIAL' RELEASE DURING THE ABOVE PERIOD. OUTCOME WAS STUDIED UNTIL JULY 1, 1974. STUDY-THREE FOCUSED ON TITLE II YOUTHS RELEASED FROM THE DIVISION'S FACILITIES DURING THE PERIOD JULY 1, 1971 THROUGH MARCH 31, 1973. (TITLE II YOUTHS ARE THOSE PROGRAM RESIDENTS NEITHER PLACED NOR COMMITTED BY THE FAMILY COURT, WHO ENTER THE PROGRAMS AS A CONDITION OF PROBATION OR BY CONSENT OF PARENT OR LEGAL GUARDIAN). A SYSTEMATIC SAMPLE OF 340 YOUTHS WAS SELECTED, AND OUTCOME FROM INITIAL RELEASE AFTER JULY 1, 1971 TO JULY 1, 1974 (THE CUT-OFF DATE) WAS INVESTIGATED. THE FINDINGS ARE DISCUSSED WITH RESPECT TO PROGRAM ADEQUACY, IDENTIFICATION OF YOUTHS WITH DIFFERENT PROBABILITY OF RECIDIVISM, SUGGESTED APPROACHES IN FUTURE RESEARCH, THE NEED FOR A MORE RELEVANT INFORMATION SYSTEM, AND A SUGGESTED THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK IN STUDYING THE EFFECT OR LACK OF EFFECTS OF DIVISION FOR YOUTH PROGRAMS. A TOTAL OF 205 TABLES OF DATA IS PRESENTED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED)