The research team conducted a meta-analysis on a broad sample of randomized and quasi-experimental studies that evaluated the effectiveness of restorative justice programs relative to more traditional juvenile court processing. Eligible studies included evaluations of programs that fully adopted a restorative justice model, as well as those that implemented one or more restorative justice features.

The study had the following objectives:

• Analyze the findings from evaluations of restorative justice programs to determine if there was an effect on outcomes related to future delinquent behavior, victim and offender satisfaction and perceptions of fairness, and offender behavioral outcomes, such as restitution and production of apology letters.
• Examine which components of restorative justice programs are most effective.

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