ITALIAN CRIMINOLOGISTS RESEARCHING POSSIBLE CHANGES IN SOCIAL AND FAMILY SITUATIONS AS THEY RELATE TO JUVENILE DEVIANCE, SURVEYED 100 INMATES OF A LOCAL REFORM SCHOOL USING A WRITTEN QUESTIONNAIRE WITH 72 QUESTIONS. THE ANSWERS GIVEN BY THIS ALL-MALE JUVENILE GROUP (1976) WITH A MEDIAN AGE OF 17 YEARS WERE COMPARED TO THOSE GIVEN BY A SIMILAR GROUP OF INMATES OF THE SAME INSTITUTION IN 1971. AMONG THE MOST SIGNIFICANT FINDINGS WAS THE FACT THAT, ALTHOUGH THE FAMILIES OF THE CURRENT SUBJECTS WERE MORE STABLE (LEGALLY MARRIED PARENTS, GAINFULLY EMPLOYED FATHERS) THAN THOSE OF THEIR PREDECESSORS, THE SUBJECTS WERE MORE ESTRANGED FROM AND HOSTILE TO THEM. THE 1976 RESPONDENTS REGARDED SCHOOL AS TOTALLY IRRELEVANT, ALTHOUGH THEY LIKED A FEW TEACHERS AND CLASSMATES MORE THAN THE 1971 GROUP HAD INDICATED. BEING EVEN LESS SKILLED AND MOTIVATED THAN THEIR 1971 COUNTERPARTS, THE 1976 GROUP HAD TOTALLY NEGATIVE ATTITUDES TOWARD THEIR MARGINAL AND OCCASIONAL OCCUPATIONS, ALTHOUGH, SUPRISINGLY, THEY STATED THAT THEY BELIEVED THAT 'INTELLIGENCE AND HARD WORK,' RATHER THAN CRIME, WERE THE BEST MEANS TO ACHIEVE SUCCESS. THE YOUTHS REVEALED THAT THEY LIKED TO SPEND THEIR LEISURE TIME WITH GROUPS OF THEIR FRIENDS AND OTHER SOCIALLY HANDICAPPED AND DEVIANT YOUTHS WITH WHOM ALONE THEY FELT COMFORTABLE, ALTHOUGH THEY REINFORCED ONE ANOTHER'S FEELINGS OF MARGINALITY AND NEGATIVE PERCEPTIONS OF SELF. THEIR SEX LIVES WERE STRICTLY PLEASURE-ORIENTED; EVEN THE STEADY HETEROSEXUAL RELATIONSHIPS OF SOME OF THE SUBJECTS HAD NO REAL MEANING TO THEM. THE RESPONDENTS ALSO FELT HOSTILITY AND MISTRUST TOWARD ALL AUTHORITY FIGURES, FROM PARENTAL TO JUDICIAL AND POLITICAL. THEY EXPRESSED THEIR BELIEF THAT ALL EXISTING SOCIAL AND POLITICAL SYSTEMS, BEING FULL OF INJUSTICES AND INEQUITIES, SHOULD BE DESTROYED, BUT OFFERED NO ALTERNATIVES. WHILE THE YOUTHS REVEALED NO CONCEPTION OF THE ABSTRACT VALUES OF HONESTY, INTEGRITY, AND ALTRUISM, THEY STATED THEIR BELIEF THAT GOOD PEOPLE EXISTED, EVEN ADMITTING THAT THEY HAD MET SOME THEMSELVES. THESE FINDINGS DO NOT POINT TO EASY SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEM OF JUVENILE DEVIANCE. PREVENTION, ESPECIALLY EDUCATING PARENTS TO COPE MORE EFFECTIVELY WITH THE PROBLEMS OF THEIR CHILDREN, IS THE BEST HOPE FOR SALVAGING ALIENATED AND DEVIANT YOUTHS, COMBINED WITH EFFORTS TO BUILD A NEW SET OF VALUES FOR THEM BASED ON THE FEW POSITIVE BELIEFS REVEALED IN THE 1976 SURVEY. --IN ITALIAN. (LGR)