UC Irvine

Teen court diversionary programs offer youth an alternative to the formal juvenile system. Through positive peer influence and community engagement, teen courts seek to hold youth accountable for their actions and reduce engagement in future delinquency. Limited research explores how teen courts operate in accordance with theories upon which they are based. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore how a teen court program, Orange County Teen Court (OCTC), operates in practice, as well as how youth on trial, their parent(s)/guardian(s), and student volunteers experience OCTC. Methodologies used in this dissertation to accomplish these goals include structured observations of OCTC, one-on-one interviews with youth referred to OCTC by a diversion agency, and analysis of survey data submitted by various OCTC participants. Observations of OCTC sessions illustrate how the program operates in accordance with theory but can simultaneously facilitate practices that subvert the ideals of teen courts. Interviews with youth indicate that OCTC was meaningful and beneficial overall, despite youth disagreeing with specific aspects of the program. Surveys find that OCTC is largely positively perceived by youth, parents/guardians, and peers, although some adjudicated youth express frustrations with the program and its requirements. This theory-driven approach to understanding and explaining OCTC contributes to a foundation of theory-informed research and assessments of teen courts and local juvenile diversion efforts.