Book Review: Wolcott, D. B. (2005). Cops and Kids: Policing Juvenile Delinquency in Urban America, 1890-1940. Columbus: Ohio State University Press. x pp., 264 pp
| Author | Sarah Heath |
| DOI | 10.1177/0734016808319232 |
| Published date | 01 September 2008 |
| Date | 01 September 2008 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
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Overall, the findings of Skogan’s research show that in terms of race, it was the African
American community that saw the most positive changes when looking at the targets to
reduce social disorder, physical decay of the city, and fear of crime. The White community
experienced little change in its perceptions of crime, but it was the Latino community that
appeared to have benefited the least from the program. Skogan explores the reasons why the
Latino community came out with the worse results for this program, addressing language
problems, isolation, and fears of deportation.
What Skogan’s research and his book have accomplished is not only providing a unique
insight into the implementation of a large-scale community-policing program but also high-
lighted the importance of this kind of research for many reasons. It demonstrates to poli-
cymakers wishing to evaluate effectiveness of new policies and strategies the importance in
investing time and effort in longitudinal research programs. It also highlights the need for
researchers in the area of policing, race, and crime to properly take into account diversity.
Skogan’s research has identified a particular problem in reaching out to the Latino com-
munity. The challenge to the police, policymakers, researchers, and criminologists is, what
can we do to address this?
Christopher Pac-Soo
Cardiff University
Wolcott, D. B. (2005). Cops and Kids: Policing Juvenile
Delinquency in Urban America, 1890-1940. Columbus:
Ohio State University Press. x pp., 264 pp.
DOI: 10.1177/0734016808319232
Cops and Kids is a welcome contribution to a burgeoning historical scholarship about
the Progressive Era. Although many historians have examined topics relating to delin-
quency, child care, and social reform in the years between 1890 and 1940, Wolcott has
delved into an area that is much less researched. What, he asked, was the role of police offi-
cers in administering youth in American cities and how did their...
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