NCJ Number
140442
Journal
Social Problems Volume: 39 Issue: 4 Dated: (November 1992) Pages: 387-399
Date Published
1992
Length
13 pages
Annotation
An analysis of the gestalt of decisionmaking in 114 revocation hearings held by a juvenile parole board in a western State shows that the gestalt perspective emphasizes the social production of decisions.
Abstract
Data included protocol information and nearly verbatim transcriptions of the hearings and attendant discussions. Informal prehearing conferences represented an interlude in the parole revocation hearings in which dispositions were officially made. Goffman's drama metaphors were helpful in understanding this interlude. Working together backstage without an audience, participants decided what happened and what should be done. They also developed a script for the team to perform at the formal hearing. In following the script during parole revocation hearings, participants confirmed definitions and decisions made backstage. Although ostensibly informal, parole revocation hearings were ceremonial performances in which the board strictly maintained its and the organization's authority over juveniles. During performances, the team consistently invoked the language of individualized justice, mixing this with a focus on individual responsibility. From the prehearing conference through the posthearing discussion, participants constructed accounts as they made decisions. Accounts were especially prominent after the formal revocation hearing; participants had one last chance to explain their decisions and performances. Decisions and accounts were embedded in an organizational context of occupational roles, tasks, and resources that maintained individualized justice as the working ideology of juvenile justice. 29 references