Criminology Research Council grant ; (35/00-01)
The aims of this research were to examine systematically young people's understanding of procedural fairness and specifically their preferences for procedural safeguards for young offenders in encounters with authoritative adults. The research is grounded in (1) calls for fair procedures when dealing with young offenders, made by the UN Convention for the Rights of the Child (1989) and the Australian Law Reform and Human Rights Commissioners (1997); and (2) in the independent significance of fair procedures (as distinct from outcome decisions) in judicial and organisational aspects of adult institutional life. Surprisingly, the young participants would rely on an authoritative adult to act fairly, more than on an offender being able to actively participate in the proceedings or to have a voice or someone else to speak up for them. Either young people are simply content to invest procedural protection in the adults in authority, or they do not know it could be done differently. Clearly adults are not always so even-handed and procedurally fair. In moves for procedural reform in institutions, young people seem to have been left behind. Understanding of young people's lack of concern about their active participation and voice and to build educative programs to help inform their expectations is needed.