Redesigning Juvenile Probation to Align With Behavioral Health and Positive Development Principles: A Quasi-Experimental Study

• Author: Kathryn A. Cunningham,Noah R. Gubner,Kristin Vick,Jerald R. Herting,Sarah C. Walker
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/00938548221082997
• Published date: 01 January 2023
• Date: 01 January 2023
• Subject Matter: SPECIAL THEMED SECTION: Transformative Areas in Juvenile Justice

CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND BEHAVIOR, 2023, Vol. 50, No. 1, January 2023, 6 –21.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/00938548221082997

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© 2022 International Association for Correctional and Forensic Psychology

6

REDESIGNING JUVENILE PROBATION TO

ALIGN WITH BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND

POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT PRINCIPLES

A Quasi-Experimental Study

KATHRYN A. CUNNINGHAM

NOAH R. GUBNER

KRISTIN VICK

JERALD R. HERTING

SARAH C. WALKER

University of Washington

Science advisory boards and policy organizations have called for adolescent brain science to be incorporated into juvenile

probation operations. To achieve this, Opportunity-Based Probation (OBP), a probation model that integrates knowledge of

adolescent development and behavior change principles, was developed in collaboration with a local juvenile probation

department. The current study compares outcomes (recidivism and probation violations) for youth in the OBP condition

versus probation as usual. Inverse probability weighting (IPW) and coarsened exact matching (CEM) were used to estimate

causal effects of OBP’s average treatment effect (ATE). Results indicated clear effects of OBP on reducing criminal legal

referrals, but no significant effects were observed for probation violations. Overall, results provide promising recidivism-

reduction effects in support of developmentally grounded redesigns of juvenile probation.

Keywords: juvenile; probation; adolescent development; community supervision; implementation; juvenile justice; recidi-

vism

National calls by influential policy organizations and scientific advisory committees

make clear the importance of integrating the science of adolescent development into

youth criminal legal operations (Schwartz, 2018). Positive youth development frameworks

AUTHORS’ NOTE: The authors would like to thank Pierce County Juvenile Court for their involvement in

the codesign process which resulted in the creation of Opportunity-Based Probation. The authors declared no

potential conflicts of interest. This study received partial funding through the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Kathryn A. Cunningham, Psy.D., Department

of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific St Ste BB1538, Box 356560,

Seattle, WA 98195; e-mail: kateac@uw.edu.

1082997CJBXXX10.1177/00938548221082997Criminal Justice and BehaviorCunningham et al.

research-article2022

Cunningham et al. / REDESIGNING JUVENILE PROBATION 7

and evidence-based curricula suggest that juvenile probation should shift to teaching account-

ability without the criminalization of normative adolescent behavior (National Council of

Juvenile and Family Court Judges [NCJFCJ], 2018; National Research Council [NRC],

2013). Recommendations for reform include providing incentives rather than sanctions,

focusing on family and community engagement, and implementing standardized risk/needs

assessments to support individualized probation goals (The Annie E. Casey Foundation,

2018; NCJFCJ, 2018; NRC, 2013; Tuell et al., 2017). These calls for transformation of juve-

nile probation practices highlight the importance of centering racial and ethnic equity in all

reform efforts (The Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2018; NRC, 2013). Stakeholders at many

levels within these agencies have perceived the need to radically transform juvenile proba-

tion operations (The Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2018; NCJFCJ, 2018; NRC, 2013).

PROBATION AS USUAL

Juvenile probation evolved as an alternative to incarceration that functioned indepen-

dently from the courts’ purview and had a rehabilitative focus (Schwalbe, 2012; Walker

et al., 2020). As probation came under the control of the courts, it gradually became more

compliance-focused (Schwalbe, 2012). Consequently, modern day probation practice often

veers between the compliance-focused model and the social work–focused model, each

with its own theory of change and definition of probation’s role (Schwalbe, 2012; Schwartz,

2018; Skeem & Manchak, 2008). The compliance-focused model emphasizes the need for

control, surveillance, and punishment, while the social work-focused model is aligned with

treatment and rehabilitation. Both frameworks ultimately aim to reduce recidivism and

increase public safety (Schwartz, 2018); however, empirical evidence suggests that tradi-

tional compliance-focused approaches to youth criminal legal involvement do not effec-

tively control crime rates and may even lead to increased delinquent behavior (Huizinga

et al., 2003; Petrosino et al., 2010).

The iatrogenic effects of probation involvement are largely attributed to the increased

surveillance of youth behavior rather than increases in delinquent behavior. The increase in

supervision contacts and implementation of additional rules to be followed (i.e., conditions

of probation) increases the likelihood that rule-breaking behavior will be noticed and pun-

ished (Paparozzi & Gendreau, 2005). Conditions of probation frequently include restriction

of behaviors that are normative for adolescents, such as early curfew and movement restric-

tion (e.g., not being allowed to leave their county of residence without probation officer’s

approval). Violating these conditions can result in punitive actions such as prolonged proba-

tion and detention (Dir et al., 2020; Goldstein et al., 2016), both of which are associated

with poor long-term outcomes (e.g., increased likelihood of criminal behavior in adulthood,

increased aggression, disruption of normative adolescent development; Gatti et al., 2009;

Goldstein et al., 2016; Schwartz, 2018).

PRIOR INCORPORATION OF ADOLESCENT

DEVELOPMENTAL SCIENCE INTO PROBATION PRACTICES

Existing research suggests behavioral modification approaches (contingency manage-

ment) can be feasibly incorporated into probation, but effects on recidivism are still

unknown. Very few studies test the feasibility of design or implementation. Proposed

reforms and studies suggest some common approaches in how principles of adolescent