NCJ Number
67023
Date Published
1978
Length
306 pages
Annotation
VARIATIONS IN ATTITUDES OF AUSTRALIAN RECIDIVIST JUVENILE OFFENDERS TOWARD SCHOOLING WERE EXAMINED IN AN INTERVIEW STUDY OF 48 MALE OFFENDERS, WITH EMPHASIS ON THEIR VULNERABILITY TO DISENGAGING FROM SCHOOL.
Abstract
THE STUDY DREW ON RESEARCH IN SOCIOLOGY, CRIMINOLOGY, AND EDUCATION. BASED ON THE PROPOSITION THAT THOSE IDENTIFIED AS LAW VIOLATORS ARE ESPECIALLY VULNERABLE TO FURTHER IDENTIFICATION AND LABELING IN OTHER INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXTS, THE STUDY USED A PHENOMENOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE TO VIEW SCHOOL THROUGH THE EYES OF THE OFFENDERS. SUBJECTS' RESPONSES WERE ANALYZED AND COMPARED FOR CONTENT, IMPLIED MEANINGS, AND INFERRED EMOTIONAL REACTIONS. VARIATIONS IN BEHAVIOR AND ATTITUDE WERE CATEGORIZED WITH RESPECT TO SUBJECTS' REPORTED TRUANCY PATTERNS. ALMOST 73 PERCENT OF THE SUBJECTS USED TRUANCY AS A REGULAR MEANS OF WITHDRAWAL FROM SCHOOL, AND NEARLY HALF HAD MINIMAL CONTACT WITH SCHOOL. THIRTY-EIGHT OF THE 42 SCHOOL TRUANTS HAD COMMITTED THE OFFENSES FOR WHICH THEY WERE CHARGED DURING PERIODS OF SCHOOL ABSENCE. THE MOST FREQUENT TRUANTS WERE LIKELY TO HAVE BEGUN TRUANTING IN PRIMARY SCHOOL. MOST WERE POOR ACHIEVERS AND EXPRESSED NEGATIVE FEELINGS ABOUT SCHOOL. MIGRANTS FROM NON-ENGLISH SPEAKING FAMILIES COMPOSED A SUBSTANTIAL PROPORTION OF THE STUDY POPULATION. INTERPRETATION OF THE DATA IS LIMITED BY THE SMALL SAMPLE SIZE, THE SAMPLE'S UNIQUENESS, AND THE LACK OF MULTIPLE INTERVIEWS OVER A LONG PERIOD OF TIME. RESULTS DEMONSTRATED THE NEED FOR FURTHER RESEARCH INTO THE OCCURRENCE AND MEETING OF TRUANCY. THE STUDY OFFERED LITTLE EVIDENCE FOR THE CONCEPT OF ADVERSE EFFECTS OF LABELING. RESULTS SUPPORTED PREVIOUS FINDINGS ABOUT LACK OF SCHOOL PROGRESS AND FREQUENT TRUANCY OF OFFENDERS. FUTURE STUDIES SHOULD EXAMINE THIS AREA LONGITUDINALLY AND CONSIDER THE RECIDIVIST OFFENDER'S VISIBILITY AND INCREASING ALIENATION FROM SOCIAL CONTROL PROCESSES. PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION AND CLASSROOM STUDIES SHOULD ALSO BE CONDUCTED. RESEARCH SHOULD FOCUS ON TEACHERS' PERCEPTIONS, SCHOOLS' EFFECTS ON DELINQUENCY, DIFFERENT INTERVENTION STRATEGIES, AND SCHOOL APPROACHES LEADING TO INCREASED INTERPERSONAL COMPETENCE. A LITERATURE REVIEW, FIGURES, TABLES, FOOTNOTES, A BIBLIOGRAPHY, AND APPENDIXES PRESENTING STUDY INSTRUMENT AND ADDITIONAL DATA ARE INCLUDED. (CFW)