Aftercare seeks to address challenges juveniles face when re-entering the community after residential placement. This study compares changes in recidivism in five Pennsylvania counties that piloted aftercare reforms in 2005 to 2010 as part of Models for Change to recidivism in counties that did not. The sample includes 3,107 referrals to court in…

Research and data on youth and delinquency is critical for identifying opportunities and developing strategies to support positive development through prevention and intervention. Responses to youth misbehavior by youth-serving systems -- including education, child welfare, behavioral health, and justice systems -- can play an important role in…

Youth with disabilities are overrepresented in the juvenile justice system, but few studies have investigated the mechanisms by which this occurs. In this study, we considered how juvenile court adjudication and length of commitment in secure facilities contributed to disproportionality in court involvement and detention, addressing an important…

Youth in juvenile justice (JJ) facilities lack access and exposure to high-quality science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) instruction, career exploration, and employment opportunities. Research on STEM knowledge and career interest of JJ involved youth is virtually non-nonexistent. The purpose of this study was to ascertain how JJ…

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) invests in mentoring programs and services to help ensure positive outcomes for youth. Successful mentoring relationships have been shown to increase youth's self-esteem, improve academic achievement, and steer them away from delinquency, substance use, and other high-risk…

Background: Justice-involved youth report experiencing elevated levels of peer victimization. However, the links between the various forms of peer victimization and specific types of charges are unclear. Objective: The current study advances our understanding of peer victimization among justice-involved youth by examining how experiencing overt…

The literature on mentorship centralizes formal mentoring programs with hired and trained staff and volunteers to work with at-promise youth of color at school- or community-based sites such as Big Brothers Big Sisters or smaller localized programs; however, these programs are not always available in rural areas. This multiple case study explores…

Violent youth crimes fell by 64 percent between 2008 and 2018 (Figure 1). For the last three years, the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) has failed to specify the offense type for nearly 90 percent of youth arrests in San Francisco (CJCJ, 2018). However, arrest data over the last ten years show declines in violent arrests across all age…

This research project's initial purpose was to explore how Black youth who had been assigned to youth detention centers described their experiences with school-based racism, and how those experiences informed their experiences with school discipline prior to being detained in a correctional facility. Guided by the following research questions, (1)…

The purpose of this study was to listen to what youth with special needs in juvenile justice (JJ) settings say they need to be successful during reentry. The three instruments used to gain an understanding of their perspectives on reentry and their perceptions of barriers include (a) intake interviews, (b) focus groups, and (c) semi-structured…

The number of incarcerated American citizens has increased significantly, including juvenile delinquents, most of them coming from low-income neighborhoods (Scommegna, 2012). The youth usually have unstable homes, inadequate educational systems, and environments where poverty isn't a choice but a lifestyle. This study aimed to explore in-depth…

African American (AA) male youth across the United States are often detained or committed to juvenile facilities at a higher rate than most population groups due to criminal or delinquent behavior. The research explored the risk and protective factors associated with delinquency for this population while bringing awareness to delinquency and vital…

Juvenile delinquency has been a great issue in the United States and there have been a multitude of efforts to reduce these offenses along with reducing recidivism rates. A 2015 report from Council of State Government Justice Center reported that there is a 76% probability that juvenile offenders will reoffend within three years and an 84%…

The purpose of the study was to explore entrepreneurial training as a rehabilitation option to reduce recidivism for juvenile offenders. The problem is that juvenile offenders return to incarceration at alarming rates. The United States record of rehabilitating juvenile offenders has been challenging since its inception of Juvenile Court in 1899.…

The longitudinal Belfast Youth Development Study (BYDS) followed a group of young people from age 11 to 21 years (from 2001 to 2011), charting their experiences of substance use, offending, education, and peer and family relationships. This allowed the investigation of risk and protective factors associated with different types of behavioural…