Emerging Findings from Research on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice

Abstract

Three fundamental questions have continued to challenge the juvenile justice system: (1) Should adolescents be held to adult standards of criminal culpability and, accordingly, be exposed to the same punishment as adults? (2) Do adolescents possess the necessary capabilities to function as competent defendants in an adversarial court proceeding? (3) How are juvenile offenders affected by the sorts of punitive sanctions that became increasingly popular during the last several decades? Over the past decade, there has been a remarkable expansion of scientific knowledge relevant to adolescent development and juvenile justice in general, and these specific questions in particular. As such, the goal of this article is to provide a summary of what is known in developmental research and how it has (or has not) influenced juvenile justice practice and policy—specifically in the realms of brain development, cognitive development, and psychosocial/socio-emotional development.

Keywords:

• juvenile justice
• legal policy
• juvenile offenders
• adolescent development
• psychosocial maturity