Although school violence is on the decline, it remains a significant concern for the general public, policymakers, and researchers. This report commissioned by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) takes a comprehensive look at the state of the research on school violence and includes additional discussions about research on serious violence and…

The term and construct "school-to-prison" pipeline has been widely used by advocates, researchers, and policymakers to describe the relationship between school disciplinary practices and increased risk of juvenile justice contact. It has been unclear whether the construct is a useful heuristic or a descriptor of empirically validated…

This longitudinal study of 248 male offenders examined the relationship between psychiatric disorders, diagnosed in adolescence, and subsequent adult criminal activity. Criminal offences were tracked for an average of 8.7 years from age 18-33. Cox Proportional Intensity regression analyses were conducted to predict the rates of adult offending of…

Being a victim of crime is a relatively common experience for both adolescents and adults. However, victimization is more widespread among adolescents, and its relationship to various problem outcomes tends to be stronger among adolescent victims than adult victims. The study described in this Bulletin uses data from the National Youth Survey to…

Documents the development of an adult sex offender risk assessment tool. A risk scale was developed based upon criminal and therapeutic outcomes of 494 sex offenders. The final risk scale included prior juvenile felony convictions, prior adult felony convictions, victim being intoxicated, denial in therapy, sexual deviance in therapy, and…

Compared with juveniles who start offending in adolescence, child delinquents (age 12 and younger) are two to three times more likely to become tomorrow's serious and violent offenders. This propensity, however, can be minimized. These children are potentially identifiable either before they begin committing crimes or at the very early stages of…

Samples adolescents and college students to examine relative contributions of egocentrism and sensation-seeking to risk-taking behavior. Results indicate a latent factor labeled risk-seeking predicted a latent factor labeled delinquent behavior, primarily indicated by alcohol consumption and delinquency. Other results indicate that consistently…

Baseline, one-year and two-year follow-up interviews were obtained from 164 arrested youths processed at a juvenile assessment center in a prospective longitudinal study. A structural equation model that included cross-sectional and longitudinal associations among drug (alcohol and marijuana), drug sales and index offenses was supported by the…

Study identifies ways that traumatic experiences and trauma-associated feelings can be offense triggers for juvenile sex offenders. Researchers interviewed the treating clinicians of 40 male juvenile sex offenders. Overall, clinicians identified prior trauma exposure as being related to the offense triggers in 85% of offenders. Implications for…

Examines the relationships of sexual, physical and emotional abuse to emotional and behavioral problems among incarcerated girls and boys. Analyses indicated that girls were more likely than boys to internalize their problems. The only abuse variable that was positively and significantly associated with emotional problems was emotional abuse.…

Reviews "Risk-Taking Behavior in Youth: A Psychological Approach to Accidents" (Jean-Pascal Assailly). Notes that childhood accidental deaths have been overlooked as an outcome of early childhood problems. Notes factors associated with accidents that are identical to predictors of juvenile delinquency. Highlights the book's strong…

Interviews with four delinquent youth in the process of real-life transitions reveal that predicting resilience or recidivism is not always as simple as quantifying research-identified risk or protective factors. Suggests that there may be other factors that have not yet been pinpointed that should be explored when trying to predict resilience or…

Describes the relationship between school behaviors and youth characteristics in school, and referrals to juvenile authorities. Describes a strategy of using teacher nominations, school discipline referrals, and community arrest data to predict delinquent and violent behavior in youth. Outlines data from a group of socially maladjusted youth to…

Studies 248 adolescents who had been in a Serious Offender Program to examine the relative predictiveness of: a common risk assessment tool; a battery of psychological tests; and a combination of demographic and theoretical factors. Regression procedures indicate that the following are significant predictors: prior commitment; male; gang members;…

Examines three factors that may place adolescents at risk for aggression and violence: personality, affect, and family. Using a sample of male adolescents at risk for violence, a cluster analysis was conducted to categorize these adolescents in terms of personality characteristics. Concludes that, among male delinquents, elevated psychopathology…