TY - JOUR
T1 - Punishing processes in youth court
T2 - Procedural justice, court atmosphere and youths' views of the legitimacy of the justice system
AU - Greene, Carolyn
AU - Sprott, Jane B.
AU - Madon, Natasha S.
AU - Jung, Maria
PY - 2010/10
Y1 - 2010/10
N2 - For those who are negotiating their way through court, there are potentially many aspects of the court-room atmosphere that can be perceived as unpleasant. Moreover, issues arising from general delays, confusion, and unprofessional conduct may be related to broader evaluations of the entire justice system, independently of how fairly people feel that they, personally, were treated by specific court actors. We explored this by interviewing youths after their first court appearance and by independently coding the overall atmosphere of the court-room. We found that, independently of how fairly youths felt they themselves had been treated, the atmosphere of the courtroom was significantly related to their overall assessments of the legitimacy of the criminal justice system. Those who experienced an atmosphere of confusion and unprofessionalism tended to view the entire justice system as less legitimate than did those who experienced better days.
AB - For those who are negotiating their way through court, there are potentially many aspects of the court-room atmosphere that can be perceived as unpleasant. Moreover, issues arising from general delays, confusion, and unprofessional conduct may be related to broader evaluations of the entire justice system, independently of how fairly people feel that they, personally, were treated by specific court actors. We explored this by interviewing youths after their first court appearance and by independently coding the overall atmosphere of the court-room. We found that, independently of how fairly youths felt they themselves had been treated, the atmosphere of the courtroom was significantly related to their overall assessments of the legitimacy of the criminal justice system. Those who experienced an atmosphere of confusion and unprofessionalism tended to view the entire justice system as less legitimate than did those who experienced better days.
KW - Court atmosphere
KW - Procedural justice
KW - Young offenders' perceptions
KW - Youth court
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=78649800268&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3138/cjccj.52.5.527
DO - 10.3138/cjccj.52.5.527
M3 - Journal Article
AN - SCOPUS:78649800268
SN - 1707-7753
VL - 52
SP - 527
EP - 544
JO - Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice
JF - Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice
IS - 5
ER -