Juvenile offenders and experiences of neglect: The validity of the YLS/CMI with dual-status youth

Abstract

The extant literature suggests that youth present in both child welfare and juvenile justice systems (dual-status) represent a unique subset of young offenders. Sparse attention has been given to the predictive validity of risk assessment measures with this uniquely vulnerable subpopulation. The focus of this research was the validity of a commonly used recidivism risk/need assessment, the Youth Level of Service/Case Management Inventory (YLS/CMI), with dual-status adolescents. One hundred twenty-eight dual-status youth from a probation division were administered the YLS/CMI and monitored during a twenty-four month follow-up for recidivism. The YLS/CMI demonstrated poor predictive validity for the dual-status youth. Recommendations for future research and policy are presented.