The Case for a New Crime Research Strategy: An Overview

Abstract

Policymakers who wish to put in place new programs to reduce crime, or to expand the scope or effectiveness of programs already in place, will quickly discover that the knowledge necessary to do this responsibly does not exist except in fragmentary and unsatisfactory form. Whether we wish to prevent delinquency or rehabilitate offenders, whether we seek to strengthen families or improve schools, whether we believe that juvenile courts should get tougher or provide better services, we will be forced to admit, if we are honest, that we only have scattered clues and glimmers of hope (and sometimes not even that) on which to base our actions.