The Effect of Program Staffing Difficulties on Changes in Dynamic Risk and Reoffending among Juvenile Offenders in Residential Placement

Current theory and practice dictates the use of risk/needs assessment to guide programming to reduce reoffending. Limited research has examined assessment change scores and recidivism, none examining whether such changes moderate the effects of deleterious community contexts. We examine a multiyear statewide sample of juvenile offenders returning to the community from residential placement ( N = 12,302). We address whether changes in dynamic risk/needs scores predict official recidivism upon return, community socioeconomic contexts predict recidivism, and which risk/needs changes moderate the effects of context. Findings reveal 6 of the 17 change scores affect reoffending, context matters, and some change scores moderate contextual effects.

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The search for the holy grail: Criminogenic needs matching, intervention dosage, and subsequent recidivism among serious juvenile offenders in residential placement

Journal of Criminal Justice ◽

10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2018.02.001 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 55 ◽

pp. 46-57 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Michael T. Baglivio ◽

Kevin T. Wolff ◽

James C. Howell ◽

Katherine Jackowski ◽

Mark A. Greenwald

Keyword(s):

Juvenile Offenders ◽

Residential Placement ◽

Holy Grail ◽

Criminogenic Needs ◽

Intervention Dosage

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An examination of change in dynamic risk of offending over time among serious juvenile offenders

Journal of Criminal Justice ◽

10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2016.02.008 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 45 ◽

pp. 48-53 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

Edward P. Mulvey ◽

Carol A. Schubert ◽

Lindsey Pitzer ◽

Samuel Hawes ◽

Alex Piquero ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Juvenile Offenders ◽

Dynamic Risk ◽

Over Time

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Evaluating RNR-Based Targeted Treatment and Intervention Dosage in the Context of Traumatic Exposure

Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice ◽

10.1177/1541204020988575 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 154120402098857

Author(s):

Michael T. Baglivio ◽

Haley Zettler ◽

Jessica M. Craig ◽

Kevin T. Wolff

Keyword(s):

Juvenile Justice ◽

Residential Placement ◽

Childhood Experiences ◽

Dynamic Risk Factors ◽

Individual Level ◽

Dynamic Risk ◽

Traumatic Exposure ◽

Adequate Dosage ◽

Justice Practice ◽

Intervention Dosage

Best practices in juvenile justice call for the individualized matching of services to assessed dynamic risk factors, with services delivered at sufficient dosage. However, prior work has largely ignored whether this recipe for recidivism reduction is as effective for adolescents with extensive traumatic exposure as it is for those without. The current study leverages a statewide sample of 1,666 juveniles released from residential placement (84.6% male, 59.8% Black, 11.9% Hispanic). We examine the associations of individual-level service matching and achieving dosage targets established by Lipsey’s Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol (SPEP) during residential placement with changes in dynamic risk during placement and recidivism post-release among juveniles with extensive adverse childhood experiences (ACE) exposure and those without. Results demonstrate heightened traumatic exposure is related to smaller reductions in dynamic risk and to an increased probability of reoffending, but that youth receiving matched services coupled with adequate dosage leads to greater treatment progress (dynamic risk reduction) and lower recidivism post-release for both low-ACE and high-ACE youth. Implications for juvenile justice practice and policy are discussed.

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Dynamic risk factors and timing of recidivism for youth in residential placement

Journal of Criminal Justice ◽

10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2018.10.003 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 60 ◽

pp. 154-166 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Celina Cuevas ◽

Kevin T. Wolff ◽

Michael T. Baglivio

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Residential Placement ◽

Dynamic Risk Factors ◽

Dynamic Risk

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The Interrelationship Between Empathy and Adverse Childhood Experiences and Their Impact on Juvenile Recidivism

Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice ◽

10.1177/1541204020939647 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

pp. 45-67

Author(s):

Chelsey Narvey ◽

Jennifer Yang ◽

Kevin T. Wolff ◽

Michael Baglivio ◽

Alex R. Piquero

Keyword(s):

Juvenile Offenders ◽

Childhood Maltreatment ◽

Criminal Behavior ◽

Juvenile Recidivism ◽

Residential Placement ◽

Childhood Experiences ◽

Traumatic Exposure ◽

Adverse Childhood ◽

The Impact

Low empathy has been implicated in antisocial, aggressive, and criminal behavior, especially among adolescents. Less understood is the extent to which empathy is amenable to treatment, and whether an improvement in empathy can mitigate the deleterious effects of known risk factors, such as childhood maltreatment. A sample of 11,000 serious juvenile offenders in long-term residential placement is leveraged to examine whether over cumulative traumatic exposure, measured by the adverse childhood experience (ACE) score, is associated with the initial level of empathy at admission to a residential program, and whether changes in empathy during treatment moderate the impact of ACEs on juvenile recidivism. Results show youth with higher ACE scores have less empathy at admission and both ACEs and empathy predict recidivism. Most importantly, large gains in empathy are able to dampen the effect of ACEs on recidivism.

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Risk Assessment Trajectories of Youth During Juvenile Justice Residential Placement

Criminal Justice and Behavior ◽

10.1177/0093854816668918 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 44 (3) ◽

pp. 360-394 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Michael T. Baglivio ◽

Kevin T. Wolff ◽

Alex R. Piquero ◽

James C. Howell ◽

Mark A. Greenwald

Keyword(s):

Juvenile Justice ◽

Criminal History ◽

Rate Of Change ◽

Policy Implications ◽

Residential Placement ◽

Recidivism Rates ◽

Multinomial Models ◽

Dynamic Risk ◽

Offending Behavior ◽

Dominant Paradigm

Although the Risk–Needs–Responsivity framework has become the dominant paradigm in criminal and juvenile justice, little empirical attention has been given to the reassessment component of the model. Here, we examine dynamic risk and promotive factor trajectories of 6,442 residential commitment placements to assess differences in progression with respect to risk reduction and promotive enhancement through a buffer score rubric (buffer = promotive − risk). Results indicate that youth progress along different buffer trajectories throughout residential placement. Multinomial models also demonstrate that dynamic, changeable factors are more essential in distinguishing trajectory group membership than demographic or criminal history indicators. Finally, there were significant differences in recidivism rates across trajectories postcompletion, suggesting that improvement in (the rate of change in) buffer scores may account for some of the variation in offending behavior postrelease. Programmatic and policy implications are discussed.

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