An Evidence-based Approach To Crime And Justice Policy Can Go A Long Way Toward Ensuring That The Best Available Research Is Considered In Decisions That Bear On The Public Good. However, The Term Evidence-based Is Characterized By A Great Deal Of Rhetoric. Indeed, There Remains A Marked Disjuncture Between Calls For Evidence-based Policy And An Understanding Of What It Means For Policy To Be Evidence-based. The Calls For Evidence-based Policy Nonetheless Provide A Powerful Foundation For Propelling A Movement Toward Bringing About Rational, Cost-effective, And Humane Policies For The Betterment Of Society. This Handbook Showcases The State Of Research On Evidence-based Crime And Justice Policy And The Challenges That Impede Its Creation And Use. The Volume Has Three Core Objectives: To Promote New And Productive Ways To Think About Evidence-based Policy; To Demonstrate How Research Can Contribute To And Guide Evidence-based Policy In Juvenile Justice, Criminal Justice, And Alternatives To System Responses; And To Identify Strategies That Can Increase Reliance On Evidence-based Policy. To Meet These Objectives, Each Chapter Is Guided By Several Central Questions: What Do We Know About Evidence-based Policy And Practice In Crime And Justice? How Can We Improve Knowledge Of Evidence-based Policy And Practice? How Can We Promote More Use Of Evidence-based Policy And Practice? Taken As A Whole, The Volume Emphasizes The Critical Need For Policies That Are Grounded In High-quality Research, That Address Critical Research Gaps, And That Fully Acknowledge The Limitations Of What Extant Research Can Do To Inform Policy Decisions-- Provided By Publisher.