Public opinion data will be collected by a survey administered to persons at random. Data collected from professionals in the field will be collected via interview techniques. Data collected from the surveys will be analyzed using descriptive statistics, as are appropriate for the data and the research question. Interview data will be coded and categorized for further analysis. This research study requires different types of information from different sources. Two distinct data collection methods will be used for the study groups. This necessitates the use of different data analysis methods for each particular method as well.

Limitations of Study

This study will attempt to achieve synthesis of the issues involved in the decision to lower the age at which juveniles can be tried as adults. However, it is possible that issues may exist that are beyond the scope of the study, but which could influence the decision. The interview process will include open-ended questions so that professionals in the field can expand on their answers. This will help to identify any pertinent issues that were not addressed in the research study.

Issues regarding the age of culpability are surrounded by highly emotional public opinion and argument. The researcher...

The research will take precautions to make certain that conclusions drawn are not biased by personal opinion. Statistical techniques will be used to help detect any bias that may be inadvertently present.
Works Cited

American Bar Association. Adolescent Brain Development and Legal Culpability, Juvenile Justice Center. January 2004. available online at http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/juvjus/Adolescence.pdf. Accessed March 24, 2008.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The rest of their lives: Life without parole for children offenders in the United States. 2005. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International: United States of America. available online at http://www.hrw.org/reports/2005/us1005/. Accessed March 24, 2008.

Bower, B. "Teen Brains on Trial: The Science of Neural Development Tangles With the Juvenile Death Penalty," Science News Online, vol. 165, no. 19 (May 8, 2004), available online at: www.sciencenews.org/articles/20040508/bob9.asp. Accessed March 24.

Deerin, M. "The Teen Brain Theory," Chicago Tribune, August 12, 2001, p. C1

Grisso, T. "What We Know About Youth's Capacities," Youth on Trial: A Developmental Perspective on Juvenile Justice, Thomas Grisso and Robert G. Schwartz, eds. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), p. 267-69

Miami-Dade County Public Defender's Office. Re-arrest rates among youth sentenced in adult courts: Evaluation report for juvenile sentencing advocacy project. (2001, October 15). available online at http://www.pdmiami.com/JSAP_2001_Impact_Evaluation.pdf. Accessed March 24, 2008.

Taylor-Thompson, K. States of Mind/States of Development. Stanford Law and Policy Review, vol. 14 (2003), p. 155, fn. 107-108.