Based on evidence that early antisocial behavior is a key risk factor for delinquency and crime throughout the life course, early family/parent training, among its many functions, has been advanced as an important intervention/ prevention effort. There are several theories concerning why early family/parent training may cause a reduction in child behavior problems including antisocial behavior and delinquency (and have other ancillary benefits in non-crime domains over the life course). The prevention of behavior problems is one of the many objectives of early family/parent training, and it comprises the main focus of this review. Results indicate that early family/parent training is an effective intervention for reducing behavior problems among young children, and the weighted effect size was 0.35. The results from a series of analog to the analysis of variance (ANOVA) and weighted least squares regression models (with random effects) demonstrated that there were significant differences in the effect sizes of studies conducted in the USA versus those conducted in other countries and that studies that were based on samples smaller than 100 children had larger effect sizes. Sample size was also the strongest predictor of the variation in the effect sizes. Additional evidence indicated that early family/parent training was also effective in reducing delinquency and crime in later adolescence and adulthood. Overall, the findings lend support for the continued use of early family/parent training to prevent behavior problems. Future research should test the main theories of early family/parent training and detail more explicitly the causal mechanisms by which early family/parent training reduces delinquency and crime, and future evaluations should employ high quality designs with long-term follow-ups, including repeated measures of antisocial behavior, delinquency, and crime over the life course.

This paper aims to review randomized experiments in criminology with offending outcomes and reasonably large numbers that were published between 1982 and 2004. A total of 83 experiments are summarized, compared with only 35 published between 1957 and 1981: 12 on policing, 13 on prevention, 14 on corrections, 22 on courts, and 22 on community interventions. Randomized experiments are still relatively uncommon, but there have been more large-scale multi-site experiments and replication programs.There have also been several experiments in which 100 or more places were randomly assigned. Relatively few experiments (only 10 out of 83) were conducted outside the United States. Meta-analyses suggest that prevention methods, correctional therapy, batterer programs, drug courts, juvenile restitution and deterrent policing were effective in reducing offending, while Scared Straight and boot camp programs caused a significant increase in offending.

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This paper presents a review and meta-analysis of the effectiveness of family-based crime prevention programs.Programs were included in this review if (a)the family was the focus of the intervention,(b)there was an outcome measure of delinquency or antisocial child behaviour, (c)the evaluation used a randomised or well controlled experiment and (d)the original sample size was at least 50 persons.Forty evaluations were found that met the criteria for inclusion.In general,these family- based programs had desirable effects in reducing delinquency (especially) and antisocial child behaviour.Over all delinquency outcomes,the weighted mean effect size of .321 corresponds approximately to a decrease in offending from 50%in a control group to 34%in an experi- mental group.Furthermore,the effects on delinquency persisted in long- term evaluation studies.The most effective types of programs used behavioural parent training,while the least effective types were those based in schools.Home visiting,day care/preschool,home/community and multi-systematic therapy programs were generally effective.Effect sizes were greater in smaller scale studies.Research on the monetary costs and benefits of family-based programs is also reviewed.