Differential effects of adult court transfer on juvenile offender recidivism

Thomas A. Loughran; Edward P. Mulvey; Carol A. Schubert; Laurie Chassin; Laurence Steinberg; Alex R. Piquero; Jeffrey Fagan; Sonia Cota-Robles; Elizabeth Cauffman; Sandra Losoya

doi:10.1007/s10979-009-9210-z

Differential effects of adult court transfer on juvenile offender recidivism

Thomas A. Loughran, Edward P. Mulvey, Carol A. Schubert, Laurie Chassin, Laurence Steinberg, Alex R. Piquero, Jeffrey Fagan, Sonia Cota-Robles, Elizabeth Cauffman, Sandra Losoya

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

56 Scopus citations

Abstract

Prior research indicates that adolescent offenders transferred to adult court are more likely to recidivate than those retained in the juvenile system. The studies supporting this conclusion, however, are limited in addressing the issue of heterogeneity among transferred adolescents. This study estimates the effect of transfer on later crime using a sample of 654 serious juvenile offenders, 29% of whom were transferred. We use propensity score matching to reduce potential selection bias, and we partition the sample on legal characteristics to examine subgroup effects. We find an overall null effect of transfer on re-arrest, but evidence of differential effects of transfer for adolescents with different offending histories. These results suggest that evaluating the effects of transfer for all transferred adolescents together may lead to misguided policy conclusions.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	476-488
Number of pages	13
Journal	Law and human behavior
Volume	34
Issue number	6
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s10979-009-9210-z
State	Published - Dec 2010

Keywords

Adult transfer
Juvenile justice
Propensity scores
Sanctions

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous)
General Psychology
Psychiatry and Mental health
Law

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title = "Differential effects of adult court transfer on juvenile offender recidivism",

abstract = "Prior research indicates that adolescent offenders transferred to adult court are more likely to recidivate than those retained in the juvenile system. The studies supporting this conclusion, however, are limited in addressing the issue of heterogeneity among transferred adolescents. This study estimates the effect of transfer on later crime using a sample of 654 serious juvenile offenders, 29% of whom were transferred. We use propensity score matching to reduce potential selection bias, and we partition the sample on legal characteristics to examine subgroup effects. We find an overall null effect of transfer on re-arrest, but evidence of differential effects of transfer for adolescents with different offending histories. These results suggest that evaluating the effects of transfer for all transferred adolescents together may lead to misguided policy conclusions.",

keywords = "Adult transfer, Juvenile justice, Propensity scores, Sanctions",

author = "Loughran, {Thomas A.} and Mulvey, {Edward P.} and Schubert, {Carol A.} and Laurie Chassin and Laurence Steinberg and Piquero, {Alex R.} and Jeffrey Fagan and Sonia Cota-Robles and Elizabeth Cauffman and Sandra Losoya",

note = "Funding Information: Acknowledgments The project described was supported by funds from the following: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, National Institute of Justice, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, William T. Grant Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, William Penn Foundation, Center for Disease Control, National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA019697), Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, and the Arizona Governor{\textquoteright}s Justice Commission. We are grateful for their support. We also want to acknowledge the guidance provided by several administrators in Arizona regarding the formulation of the questions explored in this paper and the interpretation of the data. The content of this paper, however, is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of these agencies.",

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doi = "10.1007/s10979-009-9210-z",

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AU - Loughran, Thomas A.

AU - Mulvey, Edward P.

AU - Schubert, Carol A.

AU - Chassin, Laurie

AU - Steinberg, Laurence

AU - Piquero, Alex R.

AU - Fagan, Jeffrey

AU - Cota-Robles, Sonia

AU - Cauffman, Elizabeth

AU - Losoya, Sandra

N1 - Funding Information: Acknowledgments The project described was supported by funds from the following: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, National Institute of Justice, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, William T. Grant Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, William Penn Foundation, Center for Disease Control, National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA019697), Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, and the Arizona Governor’s Justice Commission. We are grateful for their support. We also want to acknowledge the guidance provided by several administrators in Arizona regarding the formulation of the questions explored in this paper and the interpretation of the data. The content of this paper, however, is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of these agencies.

PY - 2010/12

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N2 - Prior research indicates that adolescent offenders transferred to adult court are more likely to recidivate than those retained in the juvenile system. The studies supporting this conclusion, however, are limited in addressing the issue of heterogeneity among transferred adolescents. This study estimates the effect of transfer on later crime using a sample of 654 serious juvenile offenders, 29% of whom were transferred. We use propensity score matching to reduce potential selection bias, and we partition the sample on legal characteristics to examine subgroup effects. We find an overall null effect of transfer on re-arrest, but evidence of differential effects of transfer for adolescents with different offending histories. These results suggest that evaluating the effects of transfer for all transferred adolescents together may lead to misguided policy conclusions.

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Differential effects of adult court transfer on juvenile offender recidivism

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