Non-incarcerated Youth Research Articles

Intervention for marijuana using, court-involved non-incarcerated youth

IntroductionJustice-involved youth (JIY) are at elevated risk for substance use and for substance use–related harm compared to non-JIY. Marijuana use is of significant concern in this population, as it is tied to reoffending. Motivational enhancement therapy (MET) and electronic interventions show promise in reducing youth substance use; the degree to which these findings extend to JIY requires additional research attention. Thus, the purpose of this study was to test the preliminary feasibility and effectiveness of a combined brief electronic parenting intervention plus a brief MET-based electronic intervention for JIY adolescents, followed by feedback and development of a change plan with a court worker, on marijuana use. MethodsParticipants were 83 parent-youth dyads recruited from a diversionary family court program who screened positive for past-year marijuana use. At baseline and 3- and 6-month follow-ups, youth self-reported on their substance use, parental monitoring, peer substance use, and dyads completed a discussion task querying parental monitoring, limit setting, and substance use. The study randomized dyads to psychoeducation or the experimental intervention condition post-baseline. The MET-based intervention involved the self-administered e-TOKE (an electronic, marijuana-specific assessment and feedback tool) and a brief follow-up meeting with court staff counselors to review feedback and create a marijuana use change plan. Caregivers completed a computer program aimed at improving parenting and communication with their adolescents. The study administered feasibility and acceptability measures for both conditions. ResultsFeasibility of study procedures was demonstrated through recruitment and retention (∼75 % success). Acceptability ratings from youth, parents, and court staff were high and positive. While levels of parental monitoring, as assessed by an observational task, improved over the course of the study, the intervention did not result in a significant change in any of the outcomes tested. ConclusionsDespite high acceptability and feasibility ratings for the use of an electronic plus in-person MET intervention, reduction of marijuana and other substances was limited for most youth. This suggests that a more intensive intervention, such as stepped care, may be necessary for JIY who are not specifically referred for court proceedings due to marijuana use or those with already well-established use patterns.

Differences Between Incarcerated and Nonincarcerated Youth in the English-Speaking Caribbean

Incarcerated youth across the English-speaking Caribbean engage in high levels of offending before their detention. However, we know little about whether youth detained in juvenile justice systems in the region are those with the highest offending levels. As in nations beyond the region, some groups of youth in the Caribbean may be disproportionately overrepresented in the system despite their offending levels, such as by race or gender. Using samples of secondary school students and incarcerated youth, the present study examines: (1) do incarcerated youth self-report engaging in more delinquency prior to being detained than those not incarcerated and (2) are there demographic or risk/protective factors differences between incarcerated and nonincarcerated youth? We find that, compared to nonincarcerated youth, incarcerated youth self-report higher levels of delinquency, in general, and across violent offending, property offending, and drug involvement. When we used propensity score matching to match youth by their involvement in delinquency, disparities in multiple demographic and risk/protective factors emerge between incarcerated and nonincarcerated youth. Our findings point toward racial disparities in the use of incarceration, with African descent youth more likely to be incarcerated. We contextualize our results for youth justice in the Caribbean.

Prevalence and Correlates of Self-Injurious Behaviors Among Justice-Involved Youth.

An estimated one in five adolescents exhibit self-injurious behavior (SIB), which poses serious public health concerns. The present analysis aims to describe the prevalence and correlates of lifetime SIB among first-time offending court-involved nonincarcerated youth. Baseline data from 412 youth enrolled in Epidemiological Project Involving Children in the Court (EPICC), a longitudinal cohort study, were analyzed to identify the prevalence and correlates of lifetime SIB. Almost a quarter (22.4%) of youth self-reported lifetime SIB. Participants who were female, bisexual, and those with more severe post-traumatic stress symptoms had higher prevalence odds of lifetime SIB. These findings suggest the importance of screening for SIB among youth and may provide guidance in the development of interventions designed to improve health outcomes of adolescents who come into first contact with the juvenile justice system.

Early Exposure to Adverse Childhood Experiences and Youth Delinquent Behavior in Fragile Families

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been identified as a key risk factor for a variety of negative health, psychiatric, and behavioral outcomes across the life course. Although recent research has begun to consider the role of ACEs in criminogenic behaviors among youth, few studies to date have assessed the association between early exposure to ACEs and delinquent behavior among nonincarcerated youth. Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCW; n = 3,402) and a life course theoretical framework, this study aims to address this gap in the literature by examining the relationships between individual, cumulative, and clustering of ACEs and delinquency in the lives of youth. The results of our empirical study indicate that individual, cumulative, and clustering of ACEs by the age of 5 years are associated with youth delinquent behavior. Based on our results, sociologists and criminologists should critically consider the role of ACEs in understanding youth delinquency.

The Effect of Strain, Affect, and Personal/Social Resources on Problem Substance Use among Incarcerated and Non-Incarcerated Youth

ABSTRACT We explore the applicability of General Strain Theory to juvenile substance use. In doing so, we offer three advances over prior work. First, we put forward the concept of “problem substance use” to move beyond frequency-based and more medicalized conceptions of the phenomenon toward a conceptualization that views substance use as problematic when it disrupts social relationships and expectations and when it reflects a loss of self-control. Second, we employ a dataset that permits us to explore how strains originating in different life domains influence problem substance use as well as how negative emotions and personal coping resources mediate the relationship between strain and problem substance use. Third, we move beyond prior work by comparing how strain and strain mediators operate differently in schools, alternative learning centers, and juvenile correctional facilities. We find strong effects of the strain variables and strain mediators indicated by General Strain Theory and evidence that alternative learning centers and juvenile correction facilities are associated with especially high odds of problem substance use even when strain and other variables are controlled. We conclude by discussing the limitations of current work and the implications for next steps in the strain-substance use research literature.

Mental health symptoms and delinquency among court-involved youth referred for treatment

Youth involved in the justice system meet criteria for psychiatric disorders at much higher rates than youth in the general population and a large body of research has established a relationship between mental health problems and delinquency or recidivism. However, only limited research has examined the relationship between specific types of psychopathology and specific patterns or types of delinquency for justice-involved youth and only a single study has explored the relationship between psychopathology and delinquency among youth with psychiatric diagnoses receiving mental health treatment. We examined the relationship between severity of offending and internalizing and externalizing symptoms among court-involved, non-incarcerated youth referred for mental health treatment. Over half of youth and over two-thirds of parents reported youth symptomatology at the 93rd percentile or above for internalizing symptoms, externalizing symptoms, or both. We found that youth engaged in serious or violent delinquency are more likely to have externalizing problems but that internalizing symptoms were equally high across youth committing minor, moderate, and serious delinquent acts. Findings from this study support the need for future research exploring the nuances of relationships between psychiatric disorder and patterns of delinquency, which can provide helpful information to justice system stakeholders in identifying youth needs.

In Memoriam: Herbert L. Needleman

In Memoriam: Herbert L. Needleman

Machine learning of structural magnetic resonance imaging predicts psychopathic traits in adolescent offenders

Classification models are becoming useful tools for finding patterns in neuroimaging data sets that are not observable to the naked eye. Many of these models are applied to discriminating clinical groups such as schizophrenic patients from healthy controls or from patients with bipolar disorder. A more nuanced model might be to discriminate between levels of personality traits. Here, as a proof of concept, we take an initial step toward developing prediction models to differentiate individuals based on a personality disorder: psychopathy. We included three groups of adolescent participants: incarcerated youth with elevated psychopathic traits (i.e., callous and unemotional traits and conduct disordered traits; n=71), incarcerated youth with low psychopathic traits (n=72), and non-incarcerated youth as healthy controls (n=21). Support vector machine (SVM) learning models were developed to separate these groups using an out-of-sample cross-validation method on voxel-based morphometry (VBM) data. Regions of interest from the paralimbic system, identified in an independent forensic sample, were successful in differentiating youth groups. Models seeking to classify incarcerated individuals to have high or low psychopathic traits achieved 69.23% overall accuracy. As expected, accuracy increased in models differentiating healthy controls from individuals with high psychopathic traits (82.61%) and low psychopathic traits (80.65%). Here we have laid the foundation for using neural correlates of personality traits to identify group membership within and beyond psychopathy. This is only the first step, of many, toward prediction models using neural measures as a proxy for personality traits. As these methods are improved, prediction models with neural measures of personality traits could have far-reaching impact on diagnosis, treatment, and prediction of future behavior.

Substance Abuse and Childhood Trauma Experiences: Comparison between Incarcerated and Non-incarcerated Youth

Problem statementIncrease involvement of youth in substance abuse has been a major issue internationally. Various studies have been conducted to explore the risk factors, which mostly focus on their childhood trauma experiences. Research questionsWhat is the prevalence of substance abuse and childhood trauma experiences among incarcerated youth? What is the prevalence of substance abuse and childhood trauma experiences among non-incarcerated youth? Is there difference between the two? Are childhood trauma experiences significantly associated with substance abuse? Purpose of the studyTo compare the prevalence of substance abuse and childhood trauma experiences between incarcerated and non-incarcerated youth, and to examine the association between substance abuse and childhood trauma experiences among the youth. Research methodA cross-sectional study was designed using two psychometric instruments namely Simple Screening Instrument for Alcohol and Other Drugs, and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Purposive-selective sampling method was used. In total, 765 youths (123 incarcerated, 642 non-incarcerated) were involved in the study. The data were analysed using statistical software. Independent t-test and regression analysis were performed to analyse the data. FindingsBoth incarcerated boys and girls had higher prevalence of substance abuse compared with non-incarcerated groups, which was confirmed by independent t-test (p<.001). Significant more incarcerated boys and girls had experienced childhood traumas compared to non-incarcerated. Childhood trauma experiences significantly contribute to substance abuse among incarcerated girls (p<.05), but not to incarcerated boys (p>.05). ConclusionThe prevalence of substance abuse and childhood trauma experiences are higher among incarcerated youth compared to the non-incarcerated youth. In addition, childhood trauma experiences significantly contribute to substance abuse among incarcerated girls. The findings of this study are very useful to provide an empirical knowledge towards a better rehabilitation program design for incarcerated youth.

Academic Achievement and School Functioning Among Nonincarcerated Youth Involved With the Juvenile Justice System

The relationship between academic problems and delinquency is well documented among incarcerated populations but has not been examined among nonincarcerated youth involved with the juvenile justice system. This research examined the school functioning and academic achievement of 157 youth who had brief contact with a state department of juvenile justice and then returned to the community. More than half (62.4%) demonstrated problems in school functioning or academic performance, as measured with well-validated instruments. Standard achievement scores were below average and as low as 5 standard deviations below the normative mean. Non-Caucasian youth, and those who received special education services or lived in an urban area demonstrated significantly lower achievement. Juvenile justice agencies and schools should collaboratively address the education needs of these youth.

Identity Matters: A New Intervention Threshold for Social Work Practitioners Working with African American Adolescents

The aim of this study was to provide empirical evidence for the notion that social work interventionists should consider identity issues in African American adolescents as a foci in the development of intervention strategies. The author provides an overview of the major identity constructs and their interrelationships in African American adolescents. An example of the pervasiveness of relevant identity issues in African American adolescents was demonstrated by using a regression analysis to determine how identity characteristics predicted various forms of aggression in incarcerated and nonincarcerated youth. Significant statistical findings and theoretical support was used to sustain the rational of “identity matters.”