Point: Rethinking education for children in juvenile detention centres

The article focuses on a less-discussed issue of social marginalization of people leaving penitentiaries, which is the prevalence of multifaceted health problems experienced by people in this category. It includes poor health status, resulting from, among others, poor housing conditions, harmful or risky lifestyle, and lack of access to medical services. Data from the District Inspectorate of the Prison Service in Lodz, Poland on the health conditions of inmates was accessed. These data were supplemented by qualitative research conducted in 21 juvenile detention centers and 8 prisons across the country, conducting direct observations and In-Depth Interviews (IDI). A total of 198 IDIs were conducted with incarcerated (72) and released (30) juvenile offenders, and incarcerated (68) and released (28) adult offenders. These were complemented by IDIs with experts (50) and Focus Group Interviews (FGIs; 8) with male and female inmates in 4 Polish prisons. The study revealed that mental and physical health is a serious obstacle to social reintegration of ex-prisoners. It is rarely addressed by state institutions. There are strong associations between neglect of health issues in the prison population and increasing social exclusion after leaving prison. As Poland has a restrictive penal policy, former prisoners remain a group with social stigma and little support.

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Latent Class Analysis of Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Among Justice-Involved Juveniles: Association With Motivational and Emotional Aspects of Self-Harm Behavior

Criminal Justice and Behavior ◽

10.1177/0093854821998411 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 009385482199841

Author(s):

Melinda Reinhardt ◽

Zsolt Horváth ◽

Boglárka Drubina ◽

Gyöngyi Kökönyei ◽

Kenneth G. Rice

Keyword(s):

Latent Class Analysis ◽

Latent Class ◽

Juvenile Detention ◽

Class Analysis ◽

Detention Centers ◽

Self Injury ◽

Class 1 ◽

Emotional Aspects ◽

Self Harm ◽

Nonsuicidal Self Injury

Significantly higher rates of nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) have been discovered among justice-involved juveniles. Our study aimed to discriminate homogeneous subgroups of justice-involved youth with different self-harm behavior characteristics based on latent class analysis. A total of 244 adolescents (92.6% boys; Mage = 16.99, SD = 1.28) in Hungarian juvenile detention centers completed measures of NSSI and dissociation. High-NSSI (Class 1; 9%), moderate-NSSI (Class 2; 42.6%), and low-NSSI (Class 3; 48.4%) profiles were detected relating to different forms of NSSI. Multiple comparisons showed that girls were members of Class 1 and 2 at higher rates and these subgroups showed significantly higher dissociation proportions than Class 3. Our findings pointed out diversity in self-harm profiles with different characteristics in terms of methods and severity of self-harm, experienced emotions, and other emotion regulation tendencies among justice-involved adolescents. These results suggest sophisticated treatment approaches to match variations in severity and presentation.

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Rethinking Education in the Age of Technology: The Digital Revolution and Schooling in America by Allan Collins and Richard Halverson. New York: Teachers College Press, 2009. 192 pp. $21.95 (paper).

American Journal of Education ◽

10.1086/659215 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 117 (3) ◽

pp. 433-436

Author(s):

Christopher Birch

Keyword(s):

New York ◽

Teachers College ◽

Digital Revolution ◽

Rethinking Education

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Age-Graded Transitions and Turning Points in Polish Offenders’ Criminal Careers from the Standpoint of Life Course Theory

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18116010 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (11) ◽

pp. 6010

Author(s):

Krzysztof Pękala ◽

Andrzej Kacprzak ◽

Piotr Chomczyński ◽

Jakub Ratajczak ◽

Michał Marczak ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Life Course ◽

Turning Points ◽

Criminal Activity ◽

Juvenile Detention ◽

Criminal Careers ◽

Social Adaptation ◽

Life Course Theory ◽

The Individual ◽

Individual Choices ◽

First Time

Both juvenile and adult criminal careers show regularities in the origins of delinquency, the dynamics of the criminal pathway, and the turning points that lead to desistance/persistence in crime. Research shows that family, education, and friendship environments contribute significantly to the individual choices that create criminal biographies. Our aim was to apply core aspects of life course theory (LCT): trajectory, the aged-graded process, transitions, institutions, and ultimately how desistance/persistence factor into explaining the criminal careers of Polish offenders. The research is based on in-depth interviews (130) carried out with both offenders (90) and experts (40). The offenders were divided into two groups: 30 were juveniles, and 60 were adults of whom half were sentenced for the first time (30) and half were recidivists (30) located in correctional institutions or released. The experts group (40) includes psychologists, educators, social rehabilitators, and prison and juvenile detention personnel working with offenders. We used triangulation of researcher, data, and methodology. Our data revealed that similar biographical experiences characterized by an early socialization, family and friends-based circles laid the groundwork for their entry and continued participation in criminal activity. Juvenile and adult first-time sentenced offenders led criminal careers significantly different from those of recidivists, who faced problems with social adaptation caused by lack of family and institutional support.

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