Data on the nature and extent of juvenile delinquency and the juvenile system are reviewed, and agencies and programs developed to intervene with juvenile offenders are identified. An historical perspective is provided of institutional and community approaches to handling juveniles from the 1500's through the 1970's, including, delinquency prevention and control programs, the juvenile courts, child guidance clinics, diversion, probation, and community corrections. Contemporary approaches to juvenile offenders are examined, including police discretion and specialized police youth service units; juvenile laws and court procedures; detention policies and procedures and their consequences; juvenile diversion programs; wilderness programs; and family treatment programs. The emergence of case, community, and class advocacy in the 1970's and its subsequent decline in the 1980's also is discussed. Finally, the future of juvenile corrections is assessed, with focus on the use of alternative and determinate sentencing practices, privatization, and victim-offender mediation and restitution programs. Supplemental materials are appended. Chapter illustrations, figures, tables, references, and discussion questions and name and subject indexes. See NCJ-114693 to NCJ-114706 for individual chapters.