Does Risk Assessment Make a Difference? Results of Implementing the SAVRY in Juvenile Probation

An effective approach to reducing recidivism is, first, to identify a youth's risk of reoffending and then to match the intensity of interventions to that risk level. This pre-post quasi-experimental, prospective study compared 247 (pre) with 217 (post) adjudicated youths to examine the implementation of the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth (SAVRY) and its effects on case management practices in Louisiana's Caddo parish probation office. The results indicated that placement rates dropped by 50%, use of maximum levels of supervision dropped by almost 30%, and use of community services decreased except for high-risk youths, but only after the SAVRY was properly implemented. This shift towards more appropriate allocation of resources that are matched to risk level occurred without a significant increase in reoffending. The implications for implementation and for use of risk/needs assessment in juvenile probation are discussed. Copyright ? 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Does Parental Monitoring Moderate the Impact of Community Violence Exposure on Probation Youth’s Substance Use and Sexual Risk Behavior?

The present study examined whether parental monitoring buffers the negative effects of communtity violence exposure on probation youth’s substance use and sexual risk behaviors. Among a sample of 347 Chicago youth on probation, ages 13–17 years, parental monitoring did not moderate the relationship between community violence exposure and probation youth’s sexual risk and substance use. However, parental monitoring was independently associated with less engagement in sexual risk and substance use, and community violence exposure was independently associated with more risk behavior among probation youth. The present study contributes to the growing literature on the impact of community violence exposure and parenting on adjudicated youth risk.     

Different Pathways to Juvenile Delinquency: Characteristics of Early and Late Starters in a Sample of Previously Incarcerated Youth

We examined the differences between early and late start juvenile delinquents in a sample of 531 previously incarcerated youth in Oregon's juvenile justice system. Data were analyzed with logistic regression to predict early start delinquency based on four explanatory variables: foster care experience, family criminality, special education disability, and socioeconomic status. Youth with foster care experience were four times more likely to be early start delinquents than youth with no foster care experience. Youth with a family member convicted of a felony were two times more likely to be early start delinquents than youth with no family felony. Implications for future research are discussed, as well as implications for practice and policy. We suggest that future studies examine differences between male and female delinquents, the effects of foster care on children, and interfamilial processes that facilitate criminal behavior. Efforts to support children and families at risk of abuse and neglect should be reexamined in light of the results of our study, which adds to the emerging knowledge base regarding the relationships between violence experienced in early childhood, and future criminal behavior.     

Psychological correlates of violent and non-violent Hong Kong juvenile probationers

There is little known about Hong Kong juvenile offenders on probation. The purpose of this study was to compare Hong Kong juvenile violent with non-violent probationers on static demographic and psychological variables. The study comprised 109 male juvenile probationers aged 14-20 years (M = 16.97, SD = 1.44) in community transitional housing; 34 were adjudicated for violent offenses, while 75 were non-violent. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Social Bonding Scale-Theft (SBS-T), Social Bonding Scale-Violent Crime (SBS-VC), Positive and Negative Affect Scales (PANAS), Impulsiveness Scale-Short Form (IS-SF) and CRIME-PICS II were administered to measure self-esteem, life satisfaction, social bond, positive and negative affect, impulsivity, pro-offending attitudes, and self-perceived life problems. Data on onset age of delinquent behavior, age of first adjudication, number of prior adjudications, and frequency of self-reported delinquency in the past year were also collected. t-tests were consistent with significant differences for violent offenders including higher self-esteem (p < 0.05). Non-violent offenders self-reported significantly more theft (p < 0.05) with a tendency to deny victim hurt more often (p < 0.01); 76.5% of violent offenders self-reported both violent and non-violent crime, while 58.7% of non-violent offenders reported only non-violent crime. For violent and non-violent offenders, the onset of delinquency was inversely related to the frequency of self-reported delinquency. Using ordinary least-squares (OLS) regression analyses, self-anticipated violent reoffending risk was predicted by age of onset, frequency of self-reported delinquency, social bond (inversely), and impulsivity, while non-violent reoffending risk was predicted by the number of prior convictions and self-reported delinquency. Only two psychological correlates, social bond and impulsivity, were related to violent delinquency; interventions are suggested.     

The relation of facial affect recognition and empathy to delinquency in youth offenders

Associations among facial affect recognition, empathy, and self-reported delin-quency were studied in a sample of 29 male youth offenders at a probation placement facility. Youth offenders were asked to recognize facial expressions of emotions from adult faces, child faces, and cartoon faces. Youth offenders also responded to a series of statements on emotional empathy, and provided self-reported acts of delinquency. Findings revealed a moderate positive relationship between ability to recognize the expression, angry, in adult faces, and self-reported acts of delinquent behavior, which included physical violence, theft, and vandalism. Findings revealed a moderate inverse relationship between ability to recognize facial expressions of emotions in child faces and self-reported acts of physical violence. With respect to specific facial expressions of emotions in child faces, a moderate inverse relationship was found between ability to recognize the expression, fearful, and self-reported acts of physical violence. A moderate positive relationship was found between ability to recognized the expression, fearful, in child faces, and ability to empathize with the emotional experiences of others. Strong and moderate links were found between the negative expressions, fearful and sad, and angry and sad, respectively. Additionally, a strong inverse relationship was found between ability to emphathize with the emotional experiences of others and self-reported acts of delinquent behavior. Lastly, a strong positive relationship was found between covert and overt self-reported acts of delinquent behavior. Results from this exploratory investigation suggest a link between facial affect recognition, empathy, and delinquency. Findings have important implications for educators and counselors who work with youth offenders within probation placement facilities.     

Toward an integrative and collaborative approach to Asian American and Pacific Islander youth violence research, practice, and policy

Research into the prevalence of violence and delinquency among Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) youth has proliferated in the last several years, as a result of federal funding. Consequently, this article reviews the literature on AAPI youth violence and delinquency published from 2001 to 2008. The findings demonstrate the frequency of AAPI youth violence and delinquency, provide a sense of the involvement of these youth in the juvenile justice system, reveal ethnic group differences in violence and delinquency, and explore the effects of immigration and acculturation on these phenomena. This article ends with a discussion on AAPI youth violence and delinquency prevention programs, with suggestions for future directions that incorporate a developmental and life-course approach in research and collaboration among researchers, practitioners, and policymakers.     

The predictive validity of the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth in secondary educational settings

Current developments in violence risk assessment warrant consideration for use within educational settings. Using a structured professional judgment (SPJ) model, the present study investigated the predictive validity of the Structured Assessment of Violence in Youth (SAVRY) within educational settings. The predictive accuracy of the SAVRY scales was assessed using a retrospective file review to gather data on 87 adolescents ranging in age from 12 to 18 years. Receiver-operating characteristic analyses were used to gauge the predictive accuracy. With an area under the curve of .72 (p = .001), the accuracy of the SAVRY total score in correctly identifying violent youth exceeds the accuracy of identifications based on chance predictions in this sample. Logistic regression analyses assessed the relative contribution of the SAVRY subscales, whereas the omnibus equation using all subscale scores correctly classified 82% of those adolescents who were nonviolent and 45% of those adolescents who were violent. These results build on previous research and provide support for the use of the SAVRY in educational settings for identification as well as directing intervention efforts. Practical implications and areas for future research are also discussed.     

Distinguishing Personality Psychopathology Five (PSY–5) Characteristics Associated With Violent and Nonviolent Juvenile Delinquency

This study examined the relationship between the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory–Adolescent (MMPI–A) Personality Psychopathology Five (PSY–5) scales and violent and nonviolent juvenile delinquency. Participants were 260 adolescent boys and girls in a forensic setting. Results indicated that Disconstraint (DISC), a marker of behavioral disinhibition and impulsivity, was associated with nonviolent delinquency, whereas Aggressiveness (AGGR), which is characterized by the use of instrumental aggression and interpersonal dominance, was specifically associated with violent delinquency. These findings are consistent with expectations based on empirical findings in the broader personality literature linking the construct of disinhibition with externalizing psychopathology as well as the literature identifying callous-unemotional aggression as a risk factor for violence.     

Exploring Violence Exposure, Stress, Protective Factors and Behavioral Problems Among Inner-City Youth

This study examined relationships between violence exposure, other stressors, family support, and self-concept on self-reported behavioral problems among 320 urban adolescents (aged 11–18) referred for mental health treatment. Overall, participants reported high levels of violence exposure, with a median of six past encounters with violence as a witness, victim, or through the experiences of associates. All forms of violence exposure (witnessing, being a victim, knowing of victims) were correlated with internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems for males and females. Total violence exposure predicted behavioral problems among participants, even after controlling for the effects of other risk, demographic and protective factors. Family support and self-concept moderated the influence of life stress and cumulative risk on problem behavior outcomes, but these protective variables did not significantly moderate violence exposure.     

The protective role of higher intellectual functioning on violence in the household population of Great Britain

Despite compelling evidence of the effect of intelligence on delinquency and violent crime, there is limited data on its impact on population violence. We aimed to determine the association of categories of intelligence with violent behaviors in the general population and the extent of the impact of social class on these associations. A randomly selected sample of 14,738 individuals was derived from 2 British national surveys of adults aged 16 years and older. We measured self-reported violent behavior in the past 5 years, including: repetition, injury, violence while intoxicated, familial and extra-familial victim types and intimate partner violence. We examined the moderating role of social class on all outcomes. The increased risk of violence among persons of below average IQ was explained by social class at population level. High IQ had an overall protective effect on all outcomes except violence towards family members, irrespective of socio-economic circumstances. Social class moderated the association of IQ with violence by decreasing its protective effect among those in the lowest socio-economic positions. Our findings suggest that the association of IQ and violence is not linear but protective on population level. Social class has both an explaining and a moderating role in this association.     

An Examination of Violence Risk Communication in Practice Using a Structured Professional Judgment Framework

The increased use of violence risk assessment tools in professional practice has sparked the development of best-practice guidelines for communicating about violence risk. The present study examined 166 pre-sentence reports, authored by clinicians and probation officers, to determine the extent to which they are consistent with those guidelines. We examined the frequency with which reports contained information about five topics: the presence of risk factors; the relevance of risk factors; scenarios of future violence; recommended management strategies; and summary risk judgments. Analyses revealed that the topics addressed most frequently in reports were the presence of risk factors and recommended management strategies, but none of the five topics was addressed consistently, completely, or clearly in reports. This was especially the case for probation reports. The findings highlight the need to improve practice through better implementation of guidelines for risk communication. Also needed is research on the extent to which information in risk communications is comprehended, accepted, and used by various stakeholder groups. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Risk and protective factors for delinquency among male adolescent immigrants at different stages of the acculturation process

This cross-sectional study investigated a model of risk and protective factors of the family, school, and peer environment that predict adolescent delinquent behaviour. Three social groups were compared: newcomer ethnic German adolescent immigrants, experienced ethnic German adolescent immigrants, and native adolescents. Based on theoretical assumptions about processes of acculturation, it was hypothesized that the strength of associations between the variables in the theoretical model would vary between newcomer immigrants and native adolescents and also between newcomer and experienced immigrants, but would be similar for experienced immigrants and native adolescents; these hypotheses were supported. Findings suggest that certain risk factors, such as parental violence and involvement with delinquent peers, are more strongly related to delinquency among newcomer immigrants than among experienced immigrants and native adolescents, whereas certain protective factors, such as parental knowledge and school bonding, seem to be relevant for experienced immigrants and native adolescents only. Results seem to indicate that migration can be seen as phase transition with a stronger impact of risk factors on the development of delinquency among newcomer immigrant adolescents. This has implications for studying acculturation processes in immigrant groups as well as for group-specific intervention programmes.     

Troubled or Traumatized Youth? The Relations Between Psychopathy,Violence Exposure,Posttraumatic Stress Disorder,and Antisocial Behavior Among Juvenile Offenders

The current study examined how psychopathy, exposure to violence, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are associated with antisocial behavior among 1,354 serious delinquent adolescents from the Pathways to Desistance study. Results showed that psychopathy, violence exposure, and PTSD are independently linked to self-reported involvement of delinquency, even after controlling for respondents’ demographic characteristics. However, the effect of PTSD on antisocial behavior was small. Differential associations were observed between the 2 factors of psychopathy, interpersonal/affective and social deviance, and PTSD symptoms. Specifically, the effect of social deviance characteristics on delinquency was above and beyond that of interpersonal/affective features. In addition, exposure to violence as a victim or witness were uniquely associated with increased delinquent behavior. Findings clarified the relations among psychopathy, violence exposure, PTSD, and antisocial behavior, and highlighted the differential links between psychopathy factors and delinquency.     

Voices from the Group

Summary

This article presents experiential reactions of male and female domestic violence perpetrators one year after completing a 52-week court-mandated intervention program. Data were derived from in-depth interviews as part of a larger research study looking at recidivism and other outcomes in a probation department with a domestic violence courtand a coordinated legal, programmatic and community response. Overall, elements that were most helpful in domestic violence intervention were primarily relational ones, such as group support and therapist/facilitator alliances, and secondarily, specific strategies of handling anger and other emotions, and interpersonal communication. The discussion focuses on the implications of these findings for therapists and facilitators involved in providing services for this population.     

The Delinquency Outcomes of Boys with ADHD with and Without Comorbidity

This study examined the association between childhood ADHD and juvenile delinquency by examining data from the Pittsburgh ADHD Longitudinal Study (PALS), a follow-up study of individuals diagnosed with ADHD in childhood (ages 5–12) and recontacted in adolescence and young adulthood for yearly follow-up (age at first follow-up interview M = 17.26, SD = 3.17). Participants were 288 males with childhood ADHD and 209 demographically similar males without ADHD who were recruited into the follow-up study. Delinquency information gathered yearly during the second through eighth follow-up provided a comprehensive history of juvenile delinquency for all participants. Four childhood diagnostic groups [ADHD-only (N = 47), ADHD + ODD (N = 135), ADHD + CD (N = 106), and comparison (N = 209)] were used to examine group differences on delinquency outcomes. Analyses were conducted across three dimensions of delinquency (i.e., severity, age of initiation, and variety). Individuals with childhood ADHD + CD displayed significantly worse delinquency outcomes than the other three groups, across almost all indices of offending. When compared to comparison participants, boys with ADHD-only and ADHD + ODD in childhood displayed earlier ages of delinquency initiation, a greater variety of offending, and higher prevalence of severe delinquency. These findings suggest that although childhood ADHD + CD creates the greatest risk for delinquency, boys with ADHD-only and ADHD + ODD also appear at a higher risk for later offending. The patterns of offending that emerged from the PALS are discussed in the context of the relationship between ADHD, comorbidity, and delinquency.     

Early Health Risk Factors for Violence: Conceptualization, Review of the Evidence, and Implications

Violence and aggression are public health problems that can benefit from ongoing research into risk reduction and prevention. Current developmental theories of violence and aggression emphasize biological and psychosocial factors, particularly during adolescence. However, there has been less focus on understanding the interactive, multiplicative effects of these processes. Furthermore, little attention has been given to the pre-, peri-, and postnatal periods, where prevention and intervention may yield effective results. Early health risk factors that influence negative behavioral outcomes include prenatal and postnatal nutrition, tobacco use during pregnancy, maternal depression, birth complications, traumatic brain injury, lead exposure, and child abuse. There is an ample literature to suggest that these early health risk factors may increase the likelihood of childhood externalizing behaviors, aggression, juvenile delinquency, adult criminal behavior, and/or violence. This paper proposes an early health risk factors framework for violence prediction, built on existing developmental theories of criminal behavior and supported by empirical findings. This framework addresses gaps in the adolescent psychopathology literature and presents a novel conceptualization of behavioral disturbance that emphasizes the pre-, peri-, and post-natal periods, when a child's development is critical and the opportunity for behavioral and environmental modification is high. Implications for such a framework on violence prevention programs are discussed.     

Relations between neighborhood factors, parenting behaviors, peer deviance, and delinquency among serious juvenile offenders

The present study examined relations among neighborhood structural and social characteristics, parenting practices, peer group affiliations, and delinquency among a group of serious adolescent offenders. The sample of 14-18-year-old boys (N=488) was composed primarily of economically disadvantaged, ethnic-minority youth living in urban communities. The results indicate that weak neighborhood social organization is indirectly related to delinquency through its associations with parenting behavior and peer deviance and that a focus on just 1 of these microsystems can lead to oversimplified models of risk for juvenile offending. The authors also find that community social ties may confer both pro- and antisocial influences to youth, and they advocate for a broad conceptualization of neighborhood social processes as these relate to developmental risk for youth living in disadvantaged communities.     

The Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth as a predictor of recidivism in a United Kingdom cohort of adolescent offenders with conduct disorder

This prospective study examined the predictive validity of the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk in Youth (SAVRY) and the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL: YV) in 99 male adolescents who were assessed in custody and followed up 12 months post release. Outcome data on recidivism were based on official Home Office records. The base rates for violent and general recidivism, respectively, were 38.4% and 70.7%. The predictive validity of the SAVRY Risk Total and the SAVRY Risk Rating was moderate for both violent and general recidivism, but both showed incremental validity in predicting outcomes compared with the PCL: YV. Data are discussed in relation to the limited published international literature.     

The interaction between impulsivity and neighborhood context on offending: the effects of impulsivity are stronger in poorer neighborhoods

This research blends 2 traditions of theorizing on the causes of crime, one focused on the role of individual differences and the other focused on structural and contextual variables. Two related studies examined the relations among impulsivity, neighborhood context, and juvenile offending. The first, cross-sectional study uses a large sample of 13-year-old inner-city boys, whereas the second, longitudinal study offers a conceptual replication using 17-year-old inner-city boys who are a subset of the original sample. Across both studies, results indicate that the effects of impulsivity on juvenile offending are stronger in poorer neighborhoods. Furthermore, nonimpulsive boys in poor neighborhoods were at no greater risk for delinquency than nonimpulsive boys in better-off neighborhoods.     

Probation officers' perceptions of youths' risk of reoffending and use of risk assessment in case management

Juvenile probation officers (JPOs) are required to make numerous decisions about the case management of young offenders on a daily basis. This multi-site study examined JPOs' (N?=?64) perceptions of the typical youth's risk of reoffending before implementation of a risk/needs assessment (RNA) tool, and their self-reported, case management decision-making after implementation of an RNA tool. Results indicated that JPOs tended to overestimate the likely base rates of reoffending while RNA tool estimates were more accurate. Further, most JPOs appeared to be making service referral and placement decisions commensurate with youths' risk levels, regardless of whether they claimed to use the RNA tool in their decisions. Variability in application of risk to case management practices was more a function of the probation office than of the specific JPO. Implications for use of risk assessment in juvenile probation are discussed. Copyright ? 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.