Research within the Juvenile Courts

Abstract

There has been considerable debate regarding federal guidelines designed to protect the rights of subjects, but there has been little empirical evidence regarding the manner in which the regulations have been implemented or their impact on research. Based on the author's research within a metropolitan juvenile court, this analysis discusses three major issues: the manner in which the regulations influence access to research settings, the extent to which the regulations affect researchers' ability to conduct unobstrusive inquiries, and the question of whether the regulations provide meaningful protection of subject rights. The case study suggests that not only do the regulations have great potential for impeding research within juvenile courts, but they are also unlikely to afford effective protection of subject rights.