In the study of crime and delinquency, various contributions have been made by the feminist tradition. Approaches to studying female crime are based upon the recognition that traditional theories capture the experience of males and do not readily apply to females (Chesney- Lind, 2001). In its development, feminist criminology has focused on the etiology of female offending and on the treatment of females in the criminal justice system (Haney, 2000). This paper is concerned with the latter; that is, we seek to utilize findings within feminist criminology to understand the treatment of females in the juvenile justice system. At the same time, we hope to expand that work through the inclusion of contextual organizational factors to provide a holistic perspective of the female experience in the criminal justice system.

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