Comparative/International Research on Juvenile Justice Issues: A Review of Juvenile Justice Specialty Journals

Abstract

In recent years, leaders in the field of criminology and criminal justice have advocated for comparative/international and collaborative research; however, there is uncertainty regarding how much comparative/international research on the topic of juvenile justice is being conducted and how well information on juvenile justice issues with a cross-cultural or international focus is being disseminated. This study analyzed the number and focus of studies on international/comparative juvenile justice papers in the four major US juvenile justice specialty journals (Juvenile & Family Court Journal, Journal of Juvenile Justice, UC Davis Journal of Juvenile Law & Policy, and Youth Violence & Juvenile Justice). Data came from 567 papers published during the period of 2000–2013. The authors discuss the roles of the juvenile justice specialty journals to encourage the study of juvenile justice internationally.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Bitna Kim is an associate professor, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP). She has an extensive publication record on such topics as a systemic review of the interventions/treatments/correctional programs using Meta Analysis, police-community corrections partnerships, international and comparative criminal justice, gender issues, and intimate partner homicide, as well as domestic violence. She has published widely, including recent articles in Crime and Delinquency, Journal of Criminal Justice, Trauma, Violence & Abuse, Police Quarterly, Policing, Federal Probation, Prison Journal, Criminal Justice Policy Review, Criminal Justice and Behavior, Social Science Journal, Security Journal, International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, Journal of Applied Security Research, Violence and Victims, Women and Criminal Justice, Feminist Criminology and Journal of Criminal Justice Education.

Wan-Chun (Arizona) Lin is a current doctoral candidate in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Her research interests include juvenile justice, comparative criminal justice, theory, and corrections. She has published in Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies and Management.

Eric G. Lambert is a faculty member in the Department of Legal Studies at the University of Mississippi. He received his PhD from the School of Criminal Justice at the State University of New York at Albany. His research interests include organizational issues, job, and organizational effects on the attitudes, intentions, and behaviors of criminal justice employees, and the international perceptions, attitudes, and views on criminal justice issues.