Compared with juveniles who start offending in adolescence, child delinquents (age 12 and younger) are two to three times more likely to become, tomorrow's serious and violent offenders. This propensity, however, can be minimized. These children are potentially identifiable either before they begin committing crimes or at the very early stages of criminalitytimes when interventions are most likely to succeed. Therefore, treatment, services, and intervention programs that target these very young offenders offer an exceptional opportunity to reduce the overall level of crime in a community. This Bulletin is part of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency. Prevention's Child Delinquency Series, which presents the findings of the Study Group on Very Young Offenders. This series offers the latest information about child delinquency, including analyses of child delinquency statistics, insights into the origins of very young offending, and descriptions of early intervention programs and approaches that work to prevent the development of delinquent behavior by focusing on risk and protective factors. The Bulletin reviews treatment and services available to such child delinquents and their families and examines their efficacy. At a time of limited budgets, it is imperative to consider the cost effectiveness of specific programs because children who are not diverted from criminal careers will require significant resources in the future. The timely provision of the kinds of treatment, services, and intervention programs described in this Bulletin while child delinquents are still young and impressionable may prevent their progression to chronic criminality, saving the expense of later interventions. (Contains 73 references.) (GCP) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. Treatment, Services, and Intervention Programs for Child Delinquents by Barbara J. Burns

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