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VALUE SYSTEMS OF JUVENILE PRISONERS FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY - WEST GERMANY

NCJ Number
60592
Journal
Monatsschrift fuer Kriminologie und Strafrechtsreform Volume: 61 Issue: 6 Dated: (DECEMBER 1978) Pages: 376-386
Author(s)
J MARGRAF; H A STIKSRUD
Date Published
1978
Length
11 pages
Annotation
THE VALUE SYSTEMS OF WEST GERMAN JUVENILE PRISONERS AND THEIR GUARDS ARE COMPARED IN THIS STATISTICAL ANALYSIS.
Abstract
FOUR GROUPS FROM A WEST GERMAN CITY WERE STUDIED TO ANSWER QUESTIONS POSED FROM THE PERSPECTIVES OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY: DO JUVENILE DELINQUENTS HAVE THE SAME SYSTEM OF VALUES AS THEIR GUARDS? ARE DIFFERENCES IN THE VALUES OF BOTH GROUPS RELATED TO A CORRESPONDING DIFFERENCE IN AGE? THE TWO STUDY GROUPS CONSISTED RESPECTIVELY OF 130 JUVENILE PRISONERS AND 45 ADULT STAFF MEMBERS AT THE SAME CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION. THE FIRST CONTROL GROUP WAS COMPOSED OF 30 JUVENILE EMPLOYEES OF A LOCAL CHEMICAL PLANT; 30 ADULT EMPLOYEES OF THE SAME PLANT FORMED THE SECOND CONTROL GROUP. EACH PARTICIPANT IN THE EXPERIMENT WAS ASKED TO RANK 17 ITEMS OF A VALUE INVENTORY (HUMANITY FRIENDSHIP, LOVE, CHILDREN ETC.) ACCORDING TO THEIR SIGNIFICANCE. A COMPARISON OF THE VALUE SYSTEMS REVEALED THAT THE GROUPS THAT WERE SIMILAR IN AGE HAD A COMMON SYSTEM OF VALUES. IN PARTICULAR, THE VALUES OF JUVENILE PRISONERS WERE MUCH LIKE THOSE OF NONCRIMINAL JUVENILES AND, IN ADDITION, DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY FROM THOSE OF THE TWO ADULT GROUPS. IN THE LIGHT OF THESE RESULTS, THE THESIS THAT JUVENILE DELINQUENTS HAVE INSUFFICIENTLY ADOPTED THE PROPER SYSTEM OF VALUES BECOMES QUESTIONABLE. ATTEMPTS TO 'RESTRUCTURE' THE VALUE SYSTEMS OF JUVENILE PRISONERS SEEM OF DOUBTFUL VALUE. FINALLY, NOT ALL CONFLICTS BETWEEN JUVENILES AND THEIR GUARDS CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO THE PRISON ENVIRONMENT; THEY OFTEN SIMPLY REFLECT THE GENERATION GAP. THE STUDY CONTAINS STATISTICAL CHARTS AND A SHORT BIBLIOGRAPHY. --IN GERMAN.