In a juvenile court, all cases should be processed through an intake service, where the decision for an appearance before the judge is determined by the characteristics of a particular case rather than the offense. Unless the case is closed, the intake usually culminates in an initial hearing before a judge. Here official jurisdiction of the court is extended and the final decision is reached about whether ongoing service will be undertaken. Following intake, the next stage in the probation process is primarily diagnostic, where the probation officer's efforts focus on a social study, which is court-ordered and thus compulsory for the offender and the parents. The social study provides the kind of background information the judge will need to select a disposition appropriate to the offender's needs and the security of the community. The supervision period is the third phase of the probation experience. Active counseling on a continuing basis is possible in this phase. Counseling is directed essentially toward identifying the troubled feelings that precipitated the delinquent behavior and then helping to modify these troubled areas to produce acceptable behavior. Probation conditions serve the counseling process by (1) providing requirements through which the offender can externalize negative feelings, (2) giving the offender an acceptable set of behavior standards, (3) providing a measurement standard for the offender's movement toward greater responsibility and self-control, and (4) providing a means through which the offender can formulate and exercise choice. Termination is the final step in the probation process. Where possible, a termination hearing should be held to provide an opportunity for the judge, the probation officer, the parents, and the juvenile to review and assess the probation experience and acknowledge the offender's progress. No references are cited.