Community and Youth Development Approach to Youth Crime Prevention (From Crime Prevention in Australia: Issues in Policy and Research, P 185-199, 1997, Pat O'Malley and Adam Sutton, eds. -- See NCJ-184267)

• NCJ Number: 184275
• Author(s): Ken Polk
• Date Published: 1997
• Length: 15 pages
• Sale Source: Federation Press (Distributed by Gaunt)
• Publication Format: Book (Softbound)
• Publication Type: Collected Work
• Language: English
• Country: Australia

Annotation

A framework is presented within which approaches to youth crime prevention can be classified and understood.

Abstract

Support is offered for a particular cluster of prevention activities that are aimed at what can be termed positive youth development, especially actions at the community level that attempt to provide opportunities for better education and employment. Such an approach will meet the theoretical conditions necessary for a reduction in later youth crime and, at the same time, avoid expanding the coercive reach of police, court, and correctional agencies. In discussing community and youth development approaches to crime prevention, the author stresses the need to identify what approach makes sense, problems and situations faced by young people in their communities, and the importance of expanding opportunities for direct participation by marginalized young people in neighborhood and community activities. Community responsibility for organizing youth crime prevention programs is covered, and ways of ensuring the integrity of youth crime prevention are noted. 25 references