Deviance

Historically, girls have been less likely than boys to become involved in the juvenile justice system (Ehrmann, Hyland, and Puzzanchera, 2019; Statistical Briefing Book, 2022). Increases in the proportion of cases involving girls during the 1990s led to increased attention on the needs of girls in the system and on how their needs may differ from boys’. Although girls are still underrepresented in most stages...

Bullying involving children and youth has become a topic of national conversation over the past few decades and is a major focus for schools across the United States and internationally (Gladden et al., 2014; Ybarra et al., 2019). Bullying can cause substantial harm to the children and youth who are victimized, to those who engage in bullying behaviors, and to the bystanders who witness bullying...

In 1979, Hermon Goldstein observed from several studies conducted at the time on standard policing practices that law enforcement agencies seemed to be more concerned about the means rather than the goals of policing. He argued that law enforcement agencies should shift away from the traditional, standard model of policing and that police become more proactive, rather than reactive, in their approaches to crime and...

Youth substance use treatment programs aim to reduce alcohol and illicit drug use, and the misuse of licit drugs, in youths who have been clinically diagnosed with a substance use problem. These programs differ from prevention programs, which aim to promote abstinence in youths to prevent their initial or escalating use.^[1] Treatment programs can take a multitude of approaches, such as court-based, residential-based, and...

There is a large body of evidence examining the relationship between childhood exposure to violence (CEV) and unwanted psychological, behavioral, health, and socioeconomic outcomes (Afifi et al., 2020; Carlson et al., 2019; Farrell and Zimmerman, 2018; Fitton, Yu, and Fazel, 2020; Lippard and Nemeroff, 2020; Polanin et al., 2021; Weissman et al., 2020). This relationship has emerged as an important topic of research, as it...

Liz Ryan became Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention on May 16, 2022, following appointment by President Joseph R. Biden. Prior to leading OJJDP, Ms. Ryan served as president and CEO of the Youth First Initiative, a national campaign focused on ending the incarceration of youth by investing in community-based alternatives. Ms. Ryan founded the Youth First Initiative in 2014; under...

Youth substance use prevention programs aim to promote abstinence from alcohol and illicit drugs and the misuse of over-the-counter drugs. They differ from treatment programs, which focus on youths who have been clinically diagnosed with a substance abuse problem. A variety of approaches have been developed that work with families, schools, and communities to help children and adolescents develop skills and approaches to prevent or...

Data have shown that youths of color are more likely than white youths to be arrested and subsequently go deeper into the juvenile justice system (e.g., Puzzanchera, 2021; Puzzanchera and Hockenberry, 2013; Sickmund et al., 2021; Sickmund, Sladky, and Kang, 2021). Researchers have examined the contributing factors to these racial and ethnic disparities for decades, often testing hypotheses and theoretical frameworks related to differential offending...

• Overview
• Training and Technical Assistance
• Contacts
• Resources

Overview

In October 2009, the National Youth Gang Center, which had been funded by the OJJDP since 1995, merged with the National Gang Center, which had been funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance since 2003. This new partnership recognizes that street gang activities transcend ages of the members and that a balanced, comprehensive approach is needed to...

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has released the Juvenile Drug Treatment Court Guidelines.

Juvenile drug treatment courts (JDTC) are designed for youth with substance use disorders who come into contact with the juvenile justice system. The new guidelines provide juvenile courts with an evidence-based, treatment-oriented approach that emphasizes family engagement, and addresses the substance use and often co-occurring mental health...

Overview

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) is a leader in efforts to reduce the overrepresentation of minority youth in the Nation's juvenile justice system. Funding through OJJDP's Formula Grants program (Title II) helps states address juvenile delinquency and supports improvements to the juvenile justice system. The funds also help states address the core requirements of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention...

Training Overview

In November 2018, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) hosted a training for state representatives in Baltimore, MD. Attendees included compliance monitors, disproportionate minority contact coordinators, juvenile justice specialists, and state advisory group members serving in one of those positions.

The 4-day training provided participants with an overview of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (JJDP) Act, updates on...

OJJDP's JUVJUST news services provides information on OJJDP and OJJDP-supported publications, funding opportunities, events, and more to subscribers. OJJDP will consider requests from other federal agencies to release information through the JUVJUST news service on a case-by-case basis. Subscribe to JUVJUST and browse past JUVJUST announcements below.

Review the following information to access contacts, funding information, state plans, performance measures, and more.

Need Training and Technical Assistance? Access TTA360

TTA360 is OJJDP's centralized training and technical assistance (TTA) request system. It offers a single point of entry to access the full range of OJJDP's TTA services and network providers. Through TTA360, users can submit a TTA request, create an account, and view status of requests.

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Flow of a TTA Request

TTA requests submitted via...

Training and technical assistance (TTA) is the planning, development, and delivery of activities designed to achieve specific learning objectives, resolve problems, and foster the application of innovative approaches to juvenile delinquency and child victimization prevention.

Overview

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) provides national leadership, coordination, and resources to those working to prevent and respond to juvenile delinquency and victimization. A major component of...

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) encourages the use of evidence-based programs and practices. Evidence-based programs and practices generally have one or more rigorous outcome evaluations that demonstrated effectiveness by measuring the relationship between the program and its intended outcome(s). This includes measuring the direction and size of a change in outcome and the extent to which a change may be attributed...

Youths involved in both the juvenile justice system (because of delinquent behavior) and the child welfare system (because of maltreatment ) are often referred to as “dual system” or “dually involved” youth. They share many of the same risk factors and other characteristics as youths involved in just one of these systems; however, this population tends to face a greater number of these risk factors...

Restorative justice emphasizes repairing the harm caused by criminal behavior (Bazemore, 1998). Restorative justice programs for juveniles bring together those most affected by the criminal offense—the justice-involved youth, the victim, and community members—in a nonadversarial process to encourage accountability and to meet the needs of the victims and the community in repairing the damage that resulted from the crime (Bergseth and Bouffard, 2007; Bouffard, Cooper...

During adolescence, many youths enter their first romantic relationship (Goncy, Farrell, and Sullivan, 2016; Scott et al., 2011; East and Hokoda, 2014). In some of these romantic relationships, adolescents may experience teen dating violence, as either a perpetrator or a victim—and many as both (Basile et al., 2020; Taylor and Mumford, 2016; Ybarra et al., 2016). Such abuse or victimization can have significant impacts on...