DATA WERE COLLECTED FROM THE MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION'S YEARLY STATISTICAL REPORTS FROM 1932 TO 1976. INFORMATION WAS AVAILABLE FOR AGE AT COMMITMENT, INSTITUTION COMMITTED TO, OFFENSE, AND SENTENCE RECEIVED FOR ALL INDIVIDUALS COMMITTED BY THE COURTS. TIME SERIES ANALYSIS AND SEVERAL STATISTICAL TESTS WERE EMPLOYED, INCLUDING DANIEL'S TEST-AND THE MANN-KENDALL TEST. THE TESTS WERE COMPUTED ON THE PERCENTAGE OR PROPORTION OF THE TOTAL POPULATION FOR EACH CATEGORY, NOT ON THE ACTUAL NUMBER IN EACH CATEGORY, IN ORDER TO REDUCE THE IMPACT OF SHIFTS IN POPULATION TOTALS. ANALYSIS SHOWED THAT THE TOTAL NUMBER OF COMMITMENTS HAS DECREASED SUBSTANTIALLY OVER THE PERIOD EVALUATED; TOTALS RANGED FROM 16,298 IN 1934 TO 2,903 IN 1974. GENERALLY, THE AGE AT COMMITMENT HAS DECREASED. THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE OFFENSE COMMITTED HAS SHIFTED FROM THE 'OTHER' CATEGORY TO PROPERTY OFFENSES AND NARCOTICS VIOLATIONS. LONGER SENTENCES ARE BEING IMPOSED, AND COMMITMENTS IN LIEU OF FINES HAVE DECREASED. FOOTNOTES AND A GRAPH ARE INCLUDED. TABULAR DATA AND A BIBLIOGRAPHY ARE APPENDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--LWM).