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Article
Race, Substance Abuse, and Mental Health Disorders as Predictors of Juvenile Court Outcomes: Do They Vary By Gender?
Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal
  • Chiquitia Welch-Brewer, Cleveland State University
  • Patricia A Stoddard Dare, Cleveland State University
  • Christopher A Mallett, Cleveland State University
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
6-1-2011
Keywords
  • race,
  • gender,
  • juvenile court,
  • mental health,
  • substance abuse
Abstract

Predicting juvenile court outcomes based on youthful offenders’ delinquency risk factors is important for the adolescent social work field as well as the juvenile justice system. Using a random sample of 341 delinquent youth from one Midwestern urban county, this study extends previous research by examining if race, substance abuse, and mental health disorders influence important delinquency outcomes (number of court offenses, felony conviction(s), probation supervision length, detention length, and number of probation services) differently for male and female juvenile offenders. Multivariate analysis findings revealed that race was significant only for males, and having a substance use disorder was a stronger predictor of delinquency outcomes for males; whereas, having a mental health disorder was a stronger predictor of delinquency outcomes for females. Implications for this research include the importance of early disorder identification and subsequent availability of gender-focused treatment.

DOI
10.1007/s10560-011-0229-x
Citation Information
Chiquitia Welch-Brewer, Patricia A Stoddard Dare and Christopher A Mallett. "Race, Substance Abuse, and Mental Health Disorders as Predictors of Juvenile Court Outcomes: Do They Vary By Gender?" Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal Vol. 28 Iss. 3 (2011) p. 229 - 241
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/christopher_mallett/2/