Computerized Decision Support System in the Juvenile Probation Service in Israel (From Computerization in the Management of the Criminal Justice System: Proceedings of the Workshop and the Symposium on Computerization of Criminal Justice Information at the Ninth United Nations Congress on the Preven

• NCJ Number: 167647
• Author(s): M Hovav
• Date Published: 1996
• Length: 8 pages
• Sale Source: Criminal Justice Press/Willow Tree Press
• Publication Type: Report (Technical Assistance)
• Language: English
• Country: Finland

Annotation

A computerized decision support system has been developed by Dr. Monica Shapira of the Hebrew University School of Social Work for use in the juvenile probation service in Israel.

Abstract

Shapira contends that probation officers' professional opinions and recommendations need to be as consistent, reliable, and correct as possible, because the courts adopt more than 80 percent of the recommendations that probation officers make. Statistical regression methods revealed that probation officers base their final recommendations on only eight variables. These are the number of offenses, antisocial behavior, functioning in school or the workplace, the juvenile-family relationship, family problems, the youth's age, the offense seriousness, and whether the offense was committed alone or with others. The probation officer first develops a recommendation and then opens a dialogue with the computerized program. The dialogue lasts for 10-15 minutes. When it ends, the computer displays its own recommendation on the screen. The probation officer can accept or reject a differing recommendation from the computer, but must record the reasons for accepting or rejecting it. Thus, the probation officer and the computer collaborate in reaching a decision in each individual case. A study of probation officers reveals that the system has changed probation officers' perceptions. Nevertheless, the management of the probation service has not yet reached a conclusion about its long-term role.