THE EFFECTS OF COURT STRUCTURE ON JUVENILE-COURT DECISION-MAKING

This article examines the differences in adjudications (delinquent or dismissal) and final dispositions (transfer of custody or no transfer of custody) of specialized juvenile courts compared to courts of gener al jurisdiction hearing cases involving juvenile defendants. The data are from juvenile court records of the state of Nebraska for 1982 thro ugh 1987. The study uses logistic regression to examine the difference s in the behavior of the two types of courts while controling for extr alegal, legal, and county environmental characteristics of the defenda nts. The authors found statistically significant differences in the ad judication decisions bur not in the final dispositions of the two kind s of courts. The findings are discussed within the framework of the pa rens patriae philosophy.