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Victim Experience of Meeting Adult vs. Juvenile Offenders: A Cross-National Comparison

NCJ Number
174628
Journal
Federal Probation Volume: 61 Issue: 4 Dated: December 1997 Pages: 33-39
Author(s)
M S Umbreit; W Bradshaw
Date Published
1997
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This article reports on a study that investigated differences in victim satisfaction and attitudes toward victim-offender mediation based on participation in a mediation session with either adult or juvenile offenders.
Abstract
The study examined differences between groups regarding satisfaction with the criminal justice system, satisfaction with the mediation outcome and the impact of mediation on the victim's subjective distress regarding the crime. Victims who participated in a mediation session with a juvenile offender were significantly more likely to indicate satisfaction with their participation in the larger justice process than were similar victims of adult offenders. There were no differences between groups in overall satisfaction with the justice system or the mediation outcome. The study lends empirical support to the emerging practice theory of restorative justice, of which victim-offender mediation is the most well-established and clear expression, and suggests that the practice of victim-offender mediation should be developed more broadly within the adult criminal justice system. Table, references