Examining the impact of gender, race/ethnicity, and family factors on mental health issues in a sample of court-involved youth.

Faced with anywhere between one half and two thirds of its youth having a diagnosable mental illness, the identification and treatment of mental health concerns is a critically important endeavor for professionals working with youth who have contact with the juvenile justice system. In addition, the literature suggests that factors related to both the family and to the gender of the adolescent must be incorporated into any approach to assessment and intervention within this special population. Further, prior work that has documented the interaction of gender and family issues with adolescent race/ethnicity warrants further empirical attention, as does the intermediary role that the family may play in the development of both internalizing and externalizing behaviors.

Global risk factors and the prediction of recidivism rates in a sample of first-time misdemeanant offenders.

This article examines the prediction of recidivism using the Global Risk Assessment Device (GRAD), a reliable and valid measure of dynamic factors associated with family characteristics, peers, mental health, substance abuse, trauma exposure, educational concerns, accountability, and health risks. Using a sample of adult caregivers of first-time misdemeanant offenders, two factors-education and accountability-were significantly associated with recidivistic behavior, supporting the use of GRAD data in correctly identifying first-time offenders who have the greatest and the least likelihood for future offending behavior. Additional analyses utilizing parent reports on African American males indicate that the GRAD provides discrimination in the prediction of recidivism in a group typically seen as being high risk simply because of their gender and race.

Ethnicity, gender, and global risk indicators in the lives of status offenders coming to the attention of the juvenile court.

The present study examined the risks and needs of status offenders in comparison to an at-large juvenile court sample, with specific attention paid to factors related to gender and ethnicity. Status offenders displayed significantly higher risk scores than the comparison sample in domains associated with both family and parenting concerns and educational concerns. In addition, females displayed higher risk levels than males and White youth displayed significantly higher risk levels than minority youth across a wide variety of risk domains.

Brief report on predictive validity evidence of global risk indicators in the lives of court-involved youth.

Previous work has reported the psychometric properties and evidence for concurrent validity of a battery of items measuring global risk indicators in the lives of court-involved adolescents. The present study reports additional data on the predictive validity of this battery in a sample of 224 families of adolescents who were assessed by intake workers in a juvenile court and subsequently referred for services. Analysis yielded significant differences between groups of youth who were and were not referred to more intensive mental health-based treatment on all domains of risk in his battery.

Building bridges between the parole officer and the families of serious juvenile offenders: a preliminary report on a family-based parole program.

Responding to a model of juvenile offender case supervision that called for a new intervention paradigm to guide the work of probation and parole officers, the present article reports on the use of a family-based parole initiative known as the Growing Up FAST program. Developed in part as a tool for use within this new intervention paradigm, the Growing Up FAST parole program targets serious youthful offenders who have been released from juvenile correctional facilities and their families. Based on elements contained within the "what works" literature and the Balanced and Restorative Justice model, this program recognizes the central role that field staff can play in rehabilitation efforts.

Toward conceptual development and empirical measurement of global risk indicators in the lives of court-involved youth.

This paper reports work related to the conceptual development and empirical use of global risk indicators meant to measure rapidly and reliably potential threats to the overall development and well-being of adolescents in the juvenile justice system. The development of these indicators and initial data regarding their use with court involved samples are presented. Analysis of data gathered from a sample containing 248 families of adolescents who participated in a family-based diversion program identified a seven-factor structure that corresponded to theoretically derived dimensions of risk in domains associated with prior offenses, family/parenting, education/work, peers, substance use, personality/behavior problems, and attitudes/orientation.