NCJ Number
172226
Date Published
1997
Length
90 pages
Annotation
Following a review of the juvenile sex offender literature, this report details the findings of a study conducted to demonstrate the utility of risk profiling in predicting responses to community-based alternative treatment programming for juvenile sex offenders.
Abstract
The study was designed to identify variables that predicted clinical decisions regarding appropriateness of admission to a community-based treatment program and various treatment outcomes. Constructs assessed as outcome predictors included those related to sexual deviancy, general psychological maladjustment, psychopathy, attitudes toward treatment, and legal status. Study participants were 204 youths referred for community-based juvenile sex offender treatment at the Regional Juvenile Sex Offender Program (RJSOP) operated by the Pines Treatment Center in Portsmouth, Virginia, between 1991 and 1995. Forty-three percent of these participants were white, 53 percent were black, and 4 percent were of other minority groups. The participants ranged in age from 5 to 18 years. The reference offense was child molestation in 76 percent of cases, rape of a peer or older individual in 8.8 percent of cases, and exposure in 2.9 percent of cases. About 12 percent were referred for engagement in some other form of sexual misbehavior. The data coding instrument recorded data on sex offense type leading to referral; source of referral and client legal status at intake; background information related to maltreatment experiences and history of emotional, behavioral, and academic problems; and family history. Psychometric assessment data and outcome measures were analyzed using statistical techniques. Of youths referred to the RJSOP for assessment and treatment, 59.6 percent were accepted into the program and 50.4 percent remained in the program for at least 12 months. Slightly over 22.6 percent were expelled from the program for noncompliance with attendance requirements and/or therapeutic directives, 3.4 percent were expelled for engaging in delinquent behavior of a nonsexual nature, 3.4 percent were expelled for sexual recidivism, and 20.2 percent were discharged due to circumstances unrelated to behavior. Statistical analysis results suggest clinical assessment and risk profiling efforts may be somewhat misguided in overemphasizing the importance of sexual deviance as a construct for explaining juvenile sexual offending and predicting response to treatment. The strong emphasis placed on sexual deviance may divert attention away from more basic psychological processes that affect outcomes, including those concerning receptivity to intervention. Attitudes of openness and accountability appear to be reliable predictors of both judged amenability to treatment and positive treatment outcomes. Most juvenile sex offenders who do not complete treatment do not appear to fail because of engagement in either sexual or nonsexual delinquency. Instead, they appear to fail due to lack of compliance with attendance requirements and/or therapeutic directives. While attitudes of denial and accountability are important in understanding response to treatment, they do not completely explain the treatment outcome process. Overall, results emphasize the importance of examining the phenomenon of juvenile sex offending and treatment outcome from a comprehensive, multidimensional, and conceptually integrated perspective. The study data collection form is appended. 83 references and 15 tables