Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice

Publisher:: Sage Publications, Inc.
Publication date:: 2021-09-06

ISBN:: 1541-2040

Issue Number

Latest documents

Risk Level and Variation in Social Support Access Among Justice-Involved Youth
Social support is important for the average incarcerated person, although variation exists. The amount of support received and whether improvements in support are made over confinement can vary across numerous factors including sentence length and quality of family relationships. Preliminary evidence suggests that risk level might also be an important factor to consider, though no study has examined this possibility. Accordingly, the current study examines whether access to social support (family contact, willingness to support, treatment participation, and non-family support) differs based on risk level classification (low, moderate, moderate-high, high). Additionally, we assess how risk level is associated with changes in social support during confinement. Using a sample of incarcerated youth, results show that access to social support, and to a lesser extent changes in social support during confinement, differ across risk level. The findings have important implications for juvenile justice system responses and efforts to promote support.
Family Structure and Delinquency in the English-Speaking Caribbean: The Moderating Role of Parental Attachment, Supervision, and Commitment to Negative Peers
Growing up in a household without two parents present is an established risk factor for youth delinquency. However, much of the research on family structure and delinquency derives from U.S. samples, limiting applicability to the developing world. The present study explores the role of traditional and non-traditional family structures on self-reported delinquency in eight English-speaking Caribbean nations. We further examine the moderating role of family processes (parental attachment and parental supervision) and commitment to negative peers on this relationship. We find that youth from intact nuclear families, with a mother and father present, engage in less delinquency than youth from intact blended, single-parent, or no-parent households. Further, family structure moderated the relationship between delinquency, parental attachment, and commitment to negative peers. Theoretical and research implications are discussed.
How Positive and Negative Childhood Experiences Interact With Resiliency Theory and the General Theory of Crime in Juvenile Probationers
Self-control and resiliency in juveniles are each thought to be relevant to the onset of delinquency and recidivism, and both are related to family environments and other childhood experiences. The general theory of crime is well established within the literature as an explanation for offending at all ages, and resiliency perspectives stress the importance of things like independence and morality to avoiding/desisting from deviance among juveniles. Here, Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs) are examined among 3604 juvenile probationers in the contexts of the general theory of crime and the compensatory, protective factor, and challenge models of resiliency theory. Results show that high ACE scores were associated with diminished self-control, and high PCE scores were correlated with better self-control. Policy implications are discussed.
How Positive and Negative Childhood Experiences Interact With Resiliency Theory and the General Theory of Crime in Juvenile Probationers
Self-control and resiliency in juveniles are each thought to be relevant to the onset of delinquency and recidivism, and both are related to family environments and other childhood experiences. The general theory of crime is well established within the literature as an explanation for offending at all ages, and resiliency perspectives stress the importance of things like independence and morality to avoiding/desisting from deviance among juveniles. Here, Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs) are examined among 3604 juvenile probationers in the contexts of the general theory of crime and the compensatory, protective factor, and challenge models of resiliency theory. Results show that high ACE scores were associated with diminished self-control, and high PCE scores were correlated with better self-control. Policy implications are discussed.
Family Structure and Delinquency in the English-Speaking Caribbean: The Moderating Role of Parental Attachment, Supervision, and Commitment to Negative Peers
Growing up in a household without two parents present is an established risk factor for youth delinquency. However, much of the research on family structure and delinquency derives from U.S. samples, limiting applicability to the developing world. The present study explores the role of traditional and non-traditional family structures on self-reported delinquency in eight English-speaking Caribbean nations. We further examine the moderating role of family processes (parental attachment and parental supervision) and commitment to negative peers on this relationship. We find that youth from intact nuclear families, with a mother and father present, engage in less delinquency than youth from intact blended, single-parent, or no-parent households. Further, family structure moderated the relationship between delinquency, parental attachment, and commitment to negative peers. Theoretical and research implications are discussed.
Risk Level and Variation in Social Support Access Among Justice-Involved Youth
Social support is important for the average incarcerated person, although variation exists. The amount of support received and whether improvements in support are made over confinement can vary across numerous factors including sentence length and quality of family relationships. Preliminary evidence suggests that risk level might also be an important factor to consider, though no study has examined this possibility. Accordingly, the current study examines whether access to social support (family contact, willingness to support, treatment participation, and non-family support) differs based on risk level classification (low, moderate, moderate-high, high). Additionally, we assess how risk level is associated with changes in social support during confinement. Using a sample of incarcerated youth, results show that access to social support, and to a lesser extent changes in social support during confinement, differ across risk level. The findings have important implications for juvenile justice system responses and efforts to promote support.
A Quasi-Experimental Study on the Effects of Community versus Custodial Sanctions in Youth Justice
Although community sanctions have become a popular alternative to custodial sanctions in youth justice, primary questions about the recidivism effects of community sanctions remain unanswered. The current study aims to fill this gap through a quasi-experimental analysis of 2-year recidivism differences between 4,425 youth subject to community sanctions versus custodial sanctions in the Netherlands in 2015 and 2016. Recidivism was analyzed in terms of overall, serious, and very serious recidivism for the full sample, a low risk subsample, and a medium-high risk subsample. Findings indicate that youth subject to community sanctions are less likely to recidivate overall, and less like likely to recidivate seriously than youth subject to custodial sanctions. Community sanctions were found to be particularly beneficial for preventing very serious recidivism among low risk youth. Additionally, it was found that medium-high risk youth subject to community sanctions are less likely to recidivate overall, and less seriously than medium-high risk youth subject to custodial sanctions. Implications of these findings for future research and practice are discussed.
A Quasi-Experimental Study on the Effects of Community versus Custodial Sanctions in Youth Justice
Although community sanctions have become a popular alternative to custodial sanctions in youth justice, primary questions about the recidivism effects of community sanctions remain unanswered. The current study aims to fill this gap through a quasi-experimental analysis of 2-year recidivism differences between 4,425 youth subject to community sanctions versus custodial sanctions in the Netherlands in 2015 and 2016. Recidivism was analyzed in terms of overall, serious, and very serious recidivism for the full sample, a low risk subsample, and a medium-high risk subsample. Findings indicate that youth subject to community sanctions are less likely to recidivate overall, and less like likely to recidivate seriously than youth subject to custodial sanctions. Community sanctions were found to be particularly beneficial for preventing very serious recidivism among low risk youth. Additionally, it was found that medium-high risk youth subject to community sanctions are less likely to recidivate overall, and less seriously than medium-high risk youth subject to custodial sanctions. Implications of these findings for future research and practice are discussed.
Understanding the Role of Violence and Conflict in the Stages of Gang Membership
This work uses social learning theory’s perspective on continuation and cessation of offending to explore the how rewards and punishments for violence change across the stages of gang membership. Qualitative interviews with a racially/ethnically diverse sample of 39 former gang members within two emergent gang cities in the American south are used to explore the role of violence across the stages of gang affiliation. Inductive analytic techniques are used to analyze gang members’ in-depth, semi-structured interviews to identify and further refine emergent themes through the use of modified ground theory. Results indicate that violence is expressed as central to the experiences of youth gang members across the life cycle of gang involvement and alters former members’ perceptions of the gang’s ability to provide a protective function. The extent to which the role of violence changes over time—as it interacts with youth decision-making specific to the balance of experienced and anticipated rewards and punishments of gang involvement—is integral in understanding its reinforcing effect on gang membership and association.
Florida Trauma Responsive and Caring Environment: Exploratory Factor Analysis of a Staff and Youth Trauma-Informed Self-Assessment Tools in Juvenile Residential Programs
Trauma exposure is pervasive among juvenile justice involved youth. A growing appreciation for the prevalence of trauma and the challenges it poses to successful treatment has prompted youth serving organizations to adopt policies and practices that are consistent with trauma-informed care (TIC). Despite increased interest in integrating TIC into service provision, research on various TIC initiatives and juvenile outcomes is severely underdeveloped. Presently there are no validated instruments that can measure TIC at the organizational level in criminal and juvenile justice settings. To address this gap, the present study evaluates the internal structure and psychometric properties of two self-assessment surveys—for youth and staff—intended to measure organizational-level TIC in Florida Department of Juvenile Justice residential commitment programs. Data from 2761 youth and 2781 staff survey responses from 59 programs demonstrates that these instruments possess strong psychometric properties capable of measuring several distinct aspects of organizational TIC in a juvenile justice setting.