Perceived Police Injustice, Moral Disengagement, and Aggression Among Juvenile Offenders: Utilizing the General Strain Theory Model.

Although many juvenile offenders report experiencing police injustice, few studies have examined how this source of strain may impact youths' behavioral outcomes, including risk for future recidivism. This study begins to address that gap in the literature. We applied the general strain theory as our theoretical framework to examine the interactive effect of perceived police injustice and moral disengagement on juvenile aggressive behavior. Our sample included 95 juvenile offenders who completed questionnaires on measures of perceived police injustice and moral disengagement. Results supported our hypothesis, such that moral disengagement predicted past month aggression among juvenile offenders, but only by youth who reported mean and high levels of perceived police injustice. While more research is needed in this area, this study's findings underscore the need to address both perceived police engagement and moral disengagement among youth at-risk of engaging in delinquent behaviors. Implications for intervention programs are also presented.

Race/Ethnicity, and Behavioral Health Status: First Arrest and Outcomes in a Large Sample of Juvenile Offenders.

The objective of this study was to assess the simultaneous effects of gender, race/ethnicity, and pre-arrest behavioral health (BH) service-use on age at first arrest, and first arrest outcomes. Between January 2004 and December 2011, arrest and medical records were collected on a retrospective longitudinal cohort of 12,476 first-time offenders, ages 8-18 years. Black youth were arrested at younger ages than white or Hispanic youth. Youth with psychiatric problems were arrested at younger ages than youth with substance-use, dual-diagnoses, or no BH problems. Compared to white males, black males had lower odds of detention and BH referrals. Compared to white females, black females had higher odds of release and lower odds of probation, detention, and BH referrals. A significant gender-by-BH problem interaction revealed males and females with previous psychiatric problems were arrested at younger ages than youth with substance, dual-diagnosis, or no prior problems. Implications are discussed.

Examining the Influence of Ethnic/Racial Socialization on Aggressive Behaviors Among Juvenile Offenders.

Risk assessment instruments are commonly used within the juvenile justice system to estimate a juvenile's likelihood of reoffending or engaging in aggressive or violent behavior. Although such instruments assess a broad range of factors, the influence of culture is often excluded. The current study examines the unique effect of ethnic/racial socialization on recent aggressive behaviors above and beyond three well-established risk and protective factors: delinquency history, moral disengagement, and social support. Participants were 95 juveniles who were either on probation or in detention centers in three Midwestern counties and who completed structured surveys related to personal experiences within and outside of the juvenile justice system. The findings provided partial support for our hypotheses: Consistent with previous findings, delinquency history and moral disengagement were significant predictors of recent aggressive behavior. Furthermore, when ethnic/racial socialization was added to the model, promotion of mistrust provided additional predictive validity for aggressive behavior above and beyond the other factors assessed. Based on these findings, the inclusion of education on culture may prove to be an important supplement to established intervention tools for juvenile offenders.

Detained Adolescents: Mental Health Needs, Treatment Use, and Recidivism.

Although approximately 60 to 70 percent of detained adolescents meet criteria for a mental disorder, few receive treatment upon community re-entry. Given that mental health treatment can reduce recidivism, we examined detained adolescents' mental health needs and their postdetention mental health treatment and recidivism. Altogether, 1,574 adolescents (≤18 years) completed a mental health screening at a detention center. Scores on the screening, mental health treatment utilization (60 days after detention), and recidivism (6 months after detention) were measured. About 82.2 percent of adolescents had elevated scores on the mental health screening, but only 16.4 percent obtained treatment and 37.2 percent reoffended. Logistic regression models revealed adolescents with insurance and higher angry-irritable scores were significantly more likely to obtain treatment, whereas males, black and older adolescents, and those endorsing a trauma history were less likely. Black adolescents, insured adolescents, and those with higher alcohol and drug use scores were significantly more likely to reoffend. Mental health treatment increased the likelihood of recidivism. The prevalence of mental health needs among detained adolescents was high, but treatment utilization was low, with notable treatment disparities across race, gender, and age. The use of mental health treatment predicted recidivism, suggesting that treatment acts as a proxy measure of mental health problems. Future research should assess the impact of timely and continuous mental health services on recidivism among detained adolescents.

Mortality of Youth Offenders Along a Continuum of Justice System Involvement.

INTRODUCTION: Black male youth are at high risk of homicide and criminal justice involvement. This study aimed to determine how early mortality among youth offenders varies based on race; gender; and the continuum of justice system involvement: arrest, detention, incarceration, and transfer to adult courts. METHODS: Criminal and death records of 49,479 youth offenders (ages 10-18 years at first arrest) in Marion County, Indiana, from January 1, 1999, to December 31, 2011, were examined. Statistical analyses were completed in November 2014. RESULTS: From 1999 to 2011 (aggregate exposure, 386,709 person-years), 518 youth offender deaths occurred. The most common cause of death was homicide (48.2%). The mortality rate of youth offenders was nearly 1.5 times greater than that among community youth (standardized mortality ratio, 1.48). The youth offender mortality rate varied depending on the severity of justice system involvement. Arrested youth had the lowest rate of mortality (90/100,000), followed by detained youth (165/100,000); incarcerated youth (216/100,000); and youth transferred to adult court (313/100,000). A proportional hazards model demonstrated that older age, male gender, and more severe justice system involvement 5 years post-arrest predicted shorter time to mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Youth offenders face greater risk for early death than community youth. Among these, black male youth face higher risk of early mortality than their white male counterparts. However, regardless of race/ethnicity, mortality rates for youth offenders increase as youth involvement in the justice system becomes more protracted and severe. Thus, justice system involvement is a significant factor to target for intervention.

The effects of racial heterogeneity on mental health: A study of detained youth across multiple counties.

A majority of detained adolescents experience mental health and substance use problems. Limited research has examined the interaction between the race/ethnicity of an individual youth and county-level racial heterogeneity on adolescent mental health outcomes. Participants were identified through a statewide mental health screening project that took place in detention centers across 11 different counties in a Midwestern state during January 1, 2008, to May 10, 2010. A total of 23,831 detained youth (ages 11-18 years), identified as non-Hispanic White (46.6%), Black (43.5%), or Hispanic (9.8%), completed a mental health screener that assessed problems in alcohol/drug use, depression-anxiety, anger-irritability, trauma, somatic complaints, and suicide ideation. Census data were gathered to determine the racial heterogeneity of each county and other county-level variables. Hierarchical linear regression analyses were used to test the independent and interactive effects of youth race/ethnicity and county-level variables (including racial heterogeneity of the county) on adolescent mental health. Independent of other community characteristics, as county-level racial heterogeneity increased, mental health problems among detained youth decreased. In future research on the development and persistence of mental health problems in detained youth, both community and individual-level factors should be considered.

Behavioral Health Care Needs, Detention-Based Care, and Criminal Recidivism at Community Reentry From Juvenile Detention: A Multisite Survival Curve Analysis.

OBJECTIVES: We examined the provision of behavioral health services to youths detained in Indiana between 2008 and 2012 and the impact of services on recidivism. METHOD: We obtained information about behavioral health needs, behavioral health treatment received, and recidivism within 12 months after release for 8363 adolescents (aged 12-18 years; 79.4% male). We conducted survival analyses to determine whether behavioral health services significantly affected time to recidivating. RESULTS: Approximately 19.1% of youths had positive mental health screens, and 25.3% of all youths recidivated within 12 months after release. Of youths with positive screens, 29.2% saw a mental health clinician, 16.1% received behavioral health services during detention, and 30.0% received referrals for postdetention services. Survival analyses showed that being male, Black, and younger, and having higher scores on the substance use or irritability subscales of the screen predicted shorter time to recidivism. Receiving a behavior precaution, behavioral health services in detention, or an assessment in the community also predicted shorter time to recidivating. CONCLUSIONS: Findings support previous research showing that behavioral health problems are related to recidivism and that Black males are disproportionately rearrested after detention.

Assessing the forms and functions of aggression using self-report: factor structure and invariance of the Peer Conflict Scale in youths.

This study examined the structure of a self-report measure of the forms and functions of aggression in 855 adolescents (582 boys, 266 girls) aged 12 to 19 years recruited from high school, detained, and residential settings. The Peer Conflict Scale (PCS) is a 40-item measure that was developed to improve upon existing measures and provide an efficient, reliable, and valid assessment of four dimensions of aggression (i.e., reactive overt, reactive relational, proactive overt, and proactive relational) in youths. Confirmatory factor analyses showed that a 4-factor model represented a satisfactory solution for the data. The factor structure fit well for both boys and girls and across high school, detained, and residential samples. Internal consistency estimates were good for the 4 factors, and they showed expected associations with externalizing variables (i.e., arrest history, callous-unemotional traits, and delinquency). Reactive and proactive subtypes showed unique associations consistent with previous literature. Implications for the use of the PCS to assess aggression and inform intervention decisions in diverse samples of youths are discussed.