Gotowa bibliografia na temat „Logan Area Youth Justice Service”

This article reports on a two-year investigation, which maps out contemporary approaches to the delivery of youth justice in England, in light of substantial recent changes in this area of practice. The findings are derived from a detailed examination of youth offending plans and a series of corroborative semi-structured interviews with managers and practitioners from selected youth offending services. Our inquiry has enabled us to develop a detailed three-fold typology of youth justice agencies’ orientations towards practice, represented as ‘offender management’, ‘targeted intervention’ and ‘children and young people first’; as well as a small number of ‘outliers’ where priorities are articulated rather differently. Our findings enable us to reflect on this evidence to suggest that there are a number of ‘models’ of youth justice practice operating in parallel; and that there does not appear at present to be the kind of ‘orthodoxy’ in place which has sometimes prevailed in this field. We also raise doubts about previous representations of unified models of youth justice presumed to be operative at national or jurisdictional levels. We conclude with a number of further observations about the combined effect of current influences on the organization and realization of youth justice, including the growing emphasis on localized responsibility for delivery and increasingly complex expectations of the service context.

Sufficient evidence exists that gender should and does matter in offender management. This study examined the predictive validity of risk and strength factors extracted from the Youth Assessment and Screening Instrument (YASI) and the Youth Level of Service/Case Management Inventory (YLS/CMI) in a sample of 254 justice-involved youth (148 males, 106 females) from Ontario, Canada. Overall, total risk scores from both measures predicted recidivism (area under receiver operator characteristic curve [AUCs] = .62-.70). Domain-level analyses illustrated that criminal attitudes and associates (scored as risks or protective/strengths) were among the strongest predictors of recidivism in both genders. The YASI demonstrated strong convergent validity with the YLS/CMI. The results support the YASI and the YLS/CMI as viable risk assessment measures for justice-involved male and female youth. Given that the YASI includes both gender neutral and gender responsive items, it may be a particularly good choice for use with justice-involved females.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a reflection on the current trajectory of youth justice policy. The paper offers fresh insight into the changing face of youth justice. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on a range of sources, including published journal articles and statistical evidence. In so doing it critically reviews relevant academic literature. Findings – Three critical insights arise from the review. First, there are promising approaches emerging in youth justice organised around the principle of avoiding formal processing of young people where possible; such as, for example, Triage, the Youth Restorative Disposal, Youth Justice Liaison and Diversion schemes, the Swansea Bureau and the Durham Pre-Reprimand Disposal. Thus there is evidence of an emerging consensus, across the domains of policy, practice and legislation which seem to endorse the idea of community-based minimum intervention, supported by principles of offender rehabilitation and restoration. Second, whilst they have not intruded to any great extent in the sphere of youth justice so far, there is no doubt that the government is keen to extend the remit of Payment by Results schemes. Perhaps most concerning is the issue with private sector organisations engaging in “gaming activities” where maximising profit becomes the intention over enhancing the well-being of the young person. Third, it is argued that in order to reconcile the lack of user-led engagement of offenders, and experiences of disempowerment, the priority should be, throughout the Youth Justice System, to involve young people in assessment and decision-making processes. Research limitations/implications – As an exploratory paper, it does not set out to provide a blueprint on “how” the issues outlined should be resolved. Rather, it provides a basis for further discussion, and highlights some examples of promising practice, particularly around the issues of offender engagement, participation and rights compliance. This is particularly important considering that the UK government will report to the United Nations this year (2014) on its progress in implementing and complying with the children's right agenda. Practical implications – The paper highlights the issues and ambiguities facing practitioners working within a payment by results framework which is contextualised by what appears to be a more liberal tone in public policy. It also explores the challenges delivering participatory approaches. Originality/value – The paper investigates a neglected area in youth justice, namely that of participatory approaches. It argues that, although there are resource pressures and time constraints, service user participatory techniques should be encouraged, particularly as they promote positive engagement and motivation, principally by offering a sense of control over choice.

Purpose Recent research finds that youth who identify as transgender or gender-expansive are disproportionately incarcerated in juvenile justice systems and are treated differently from their non-trans peers (Himmelstein and Brückner, 2011; Hunt and Moodie-Mills, 2012; Irvine, 2010; Mitchum and Moodie-Mills, 2014). Juvenile justice systems have paid little attention to this group of young people in terms of their unique service needs and risk factors. Using qualitative methods, the researchers analyze in-depth interviews and focus group findings from formerly incarcerated trans youth in juvenile justice settings to better understand their experiences. This paper aims to examine the challenges for young people, and, as well as considered recommendations for juvenile justice professionals to study toward making changes in policies, practices and programs that are needed to support young people who are transgender or gender expansive. Design/methodology/approach Using qualitative, case examples and descriptive analysis, this paper describes the experiences of trans youth in juvenile justice settings and studies toward developing models of promoting trans-affirming approaches to enhance juvenile justice institutions for trans and gender-expansive youth placed in them. The paper describes the evolution of an approach used by the authors, in New York state juvenile justice settings to increase a trans-affirming perspective as a central role in the organization’s strategy and design, and the methods it is using to institutionalize this critical change. Findings culled from the focus groups and in-depth interviews with 15 former residents of juvenile justice settings and several (3) key staff members from the juvenile justice system, focusing on policies, practices and training models are useful tools for assessing progress and recommending actions to increase the affirming nature of such systems. At its conclusion, this chapter will provide clear outcomes and implications for the development of policies, practices and programs with trans and gender expansive youth in juvenile justice systems. Findings Finding are conceptualized in six thematic categories, namely, privacy, access to health and mental health care, the difference between sexual orientation and gender identity, name and pronoun use, clothing, appearance and mannerism, and housing issues. Research limitations/implications This study is limited as it focuses on formerly incarcerated youth in the New York City area. Practical implications The following implications for practice stemming from this study are as follows: juvenile justice professionals (including judges, defense attorneys, prosecutors, probation officers and detention staff) must treat – and ensure others treat – all trans and gender-expansive youth with fairness, dignity and respect, including prohibiting any attempts to ridicule or change a youth’s gender identity or expression. Having written nondiscrimination and anti-harassment policy is also essential. These policies can address issues such as prohibiting harassment of youth or staff who are trans or gender expansive, requiring the use of respectful and inclusive language and determining how gender rules (e.g. usage of “male or “female” bathrooms, gender-based room assignments) will be addressed for transgender and gender-nonconforming youth. Programs should also provide clients and staff with training and helpful written materials. Juvenile justice professionals must promote the well-being of transgender youth by allowing them to express their gender identity through choice of clothing, name, hair-style and other means of expression and by ensuring that they have access to appropriate medical care if necessary. Juvenile justice professionals must receive training and resources regarding the unique societal, familial and developmental challenges confronting trans youth and the relevance of these issues to court proceedings. Training must be designed to address the specific professional responsibilities of the audience (i.e. judges, defense attorneys, prosecutors, probation officers and detention staff). Juvenile justice professionals must develop individualized, developmentally appropriate responses to the behavior of each trans youth, tailored to address the specific circumstances of his or her or their life. Social implications Providing trans-affirming services to youth in juvenile justice settings is a matter of equity and should be the goal strived for by all systems that care for these young people. Helping trans and gender-expansive youth reenter and reintegrate into society should be a primary goal. There are many organizations and systems that stand ready to assist juvenile justice systems and facilities in supporting trans and gender expansive youth in their custody and helping them to rehabilitate, heal and reenter a society that welcomes their participation and where they can thrive and not just survive. Originality/value The paper is original in that it examines the lived experiences of trans and gender-expansive youth in juvenile justice systems. An area, which has not been fully explored in the professional literature.

One emphasis of juvenile justice reform has been implementation of risk assessment instruments to improve case planning. This study examined the ability of juvenile probation departments to apply the risk-needs-responsivity (RNR) framework into case planning following a comprehensive implementation protocol. Data were collected on 385 adolescent offenders across three probation departments following implementation of the Structured Assessment of Violence Risk for Youth (SAVRY) and an RNR-related case planning policy. As expected, as risk levels of youth increased, probation departments assigned more services and addressed more criminogenic need areas in their case plans. Most case plans (86%) adhered to the policy to limit the number of needs addressed at one time. The quality of service-to-need matching varied by criminogenic need area, risk level, and site. Implications to juvenile courts’ and probation officers’ case planning and the challenges of research on service-to-need matching are discussed.

Several brief screening measures for youth risk to reoffend have been developed; however, these measures have been tested primarily in high-income English-speaking countries and their predictive validity is limited. A recent study proposed a screening strategy using a combination of seven items from the Youth Level of Service/Case Management Inventory (YLS/CMI). Predictive validity for this strategy was better than that reported in studies of previously developed screening tools. In the current study, the predictive validity of this strategy was examined across samples of justice-involved youth from two countries: Canada ( N = 196) and Portugal ( N = 2,348). The full version of the YLS/CMI was completed and recidivism data were collected over a 2-year period. Results support the predictive validity of this strategy, with area under the curve (AUC) values (.69–.74) very similar to those found in the full version in each country, both in the full samples, and for both genders.

Purpose This paper provides an overview of transitions across forensic child and adolescent mental health services in England and Wales. The purpose of this paper is to delineate the national secure services system for young people in contact with the youth justice system. Design/methodology/approach This paper reviews findings from the existing literature of transitions across forensic child and adolescent mental health services, drawing attention to present facilitators and barriers to optimal transition. The authors examine the infrastructure of current services and highlight gaps between child and adult service continuity and evaluate the impact of poor transitions on young offenders’ mental health and wellbeing. Findings Young offenders experience a broad range of difficulties, from the multiple interfaces with the legal system, untreated mental health problems, and poor transition to adult services. Barriers such as long waiting lists, lack of coordination between services and lack of transition preparation impede significantly smooth transitions. Research limitations/implications The authors need to develop, test and evaluate models of transitional care that improve mental health and wellbeing of this group. Practical implications Mapping young offenders’ care pathway will help to understand their needs and also to impact current policy and practice. Key workers in forensic services should facilitate the transition process by developing sustainable relationships with the young person and creating a safe clinical environment. Originality/value Transition of care from forensic child and adolescent mental health services is a neglected area. This paper attempts to highlight the nature and magnitude of the problems at the transition interface in a forensic context.

ObjectivesFirst, to investigate whether there is a relationship between a family being known to child protective services or police at the time of birth and the risk of abusive head trauma (AHT, formerly known as shaken baby syndrome). Second, to investigate whether data from child protective services or police improve a predictive risk model derived from health records.DesignRetrospective case control study of child protective service and police records.SettingNine maternity hospitals.Participants142 consecutive cases of AHT admitted to a tertiary children’s hospital from 1991 to 2010 and born in one of the nine participating maternity hospitals. 550 controls matched by the date and hospital of birth.Outcome measureAbusive head trauma.ResultsThere is a relationship between families known to child protective services or police and the risk of AHT. Notification to child protective services: univariable OR 7.24 (95% CI 4.70 to 11.14). Involvement with youth justice: univariable OR 8.94 (95% CI 4.71 to 16.95). Police call-out for partner violence: univariable OR 3.85 (95% CI 2.51 to 5.91). Other violence offence: univariable OR 2.73 (95% CI 1.69 to 4.40). Drug offence: univariable OR 2.82 (95% CI 1.63 to 4.89). However, in multi-variable analysis with data from perinatal health records, notification to child protective services was the only one of these variables to remain in the final model (OR 4.84; 95% CI 2.61 to 8.97) and had little effect on overall predictive power. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 89.5% (95% CI 86.6 to 92.5) using variables from health data alone and 90.9% (95% CI 88.0 to 93.7) when notification was added.ConclusionsFamily involvement with child protective services or police is associated with increased risk of AHT. However, accessing such data at the time of birth would add little predictive power to a risk model derived from routine health information.

Prof. Stephanie Matseleng AllaisStephanie Matseleng Allais is Research Chair of Skills Development and Professor of Education at the Centre for Researching Education and Labour (REAL) at the University of the Witwatersrand. She researches international education and development, focused on education/work relationships. Prof. Suzanne Elizabeth BesterSuzanne Bester is an Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Pretoria. Her main area of expertise is psychological assessment and intervention with a particular interest in dynamic assessment. She is also interested in well-being. Dr Tafireyi ChambokoTafireyi Chamboko is a Senior Lecturer in agricultural economics with 27 years’ experience in the field of agricultural economics, agricultural marketing and pricing analysis, farm management research, livestock economics and data analysis. He is a recipient of a PhD Fellowship from the Africa Economic Research Consortium (AERC) to pursue a DPhilAG at the University of Zimbabwe. Prof. Doria DanielsDora Daniels has a PhD in International and Intercultural Education from the University of Southern California. Her passion lies in understanding marginalised populations’ experiences with educational access and inclusion. This NRF-rated research focuses on women’s educational empowerment, gender in community history, and adult education and training for active citizenship. Ms Jennifer EsauJennifer Esau holds an MEd in Educational Support from the University of Stellenbosch and a BA (Hons) in Health Care Studies from the University of the Western Cape. She is currently studying towards a PhD in Education at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. Her MEd research was on TVET students’ educational experiences of family and community support. Associate Prof. James GarrawayJames Garraway works in the Professional Education Research Institute (PERI) at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. His research focus is on work-integrated learning and the development of the university of technology sector, primarily using Activity Theory and Change Laboratory approaches. He supervises PhD and Master’s students in this field. Prof. Darren LortanDarren Lortan is an Associate Professor and the head of department of Mathematics at the Durban University of Technology. His interests outside of Mathematics include Community Engagement and Articulation in and across the Post-School Education and Training Sector. He is the Project Coordinator of the Unfurling Post-School Education and Training (UPSET) Articulation Project. Dr Lucky MalulekeLucky Maluleke is an emerging researcher and academic in the field of career development and Technical and Vocational Education and Training. He is a lecturer in the Faculty of Education at Nelson Mandela University. His current research interest is in career development and career decision-making, as well as promoting post-school education and training among youth. Dr Muneta Grace Manzeke-KangaraMuneta Grace Manzeke-Kangara is a Soil Scientist in Climate- and Nutrient-Smart Agriculture at Rothamsted Research in the United Kingdom. While working at the University of Zimbabwe, Muneta promoted Integrated Soil Fertility Management and conservation agriculture for soil fertility and grain yield improvement; and agronomic biofortification with micronutrient-supplying fertilisers for improving grain quality in smallholder farming systems. Prof. Simon McGrathSimon McGrath is Professor of Education at the University of Glasgow and a Visiting Professor at Nelson Mandela University. He is co-editor of the Journal of Vocational Education and Training and of the Handbook of Vocational Education and Training. Dr Mary Mmatsatsi MadilengMary Mmatsatsi Madileng is a senior lecturer in the Department of English Studies at the University of South Africa (UNISA). Her key areas of teaching expertise and research interest include Applied Linguistics; Education, Skills Development and Pedagogy in Vocational Education and Training; Work-Integrated Learning; and Vocational Educator Development. Dr Chenjerai MuwanikiChenjerai Muwaniki is a lecturer in Adult and Continuing Education at Great Zimbabwe University. His research interests are in adult education, vocational education, especially green skills in vocational education, learning needs of smallholder farmers and curriculum responsiveness in Agriculture Education and Training in Zimbabwe. Prof. Shervani PillayShervani Pillay is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education at Nelson Mandela University. She is Head of the Post Graduate Studies Department. Shervani does research in Higher Education Transformation and Decolonisation in Curriculum, Educational Policy, Higher Education and Curriculum Theory. Dr Lesley PowellLesley Powell is the Chair of Youth Unemployment, Employability and Empowerment (CYUEE) at Nelson Mandela University. Her scholarship is largely focused on Vocational Education and Training (VET), with her theoretical interests being the ways in which education and training intervene in poverty and advance the conditions for sustainable livelihoods. She has published widely on VET from human development and social justice perspectives, and more recently also on skills and the informal sector. Prof. Suresh RamsuroopSuresh Ramsuroop is an Associate Professor in Chemical Engineering and the assistant dean in the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. He has over 33 years of industrial and academic experience. His current research interests include Computational Chemical Thermodynamics, Process Synthesis, and Design and Engineering Education. Mr Deepak SinghDeepak Singh has an MSc in Physics with research areas including Statistical Physics. He lectures in the Department of Physics at the Durban University of Technology. Dr Tanya SmitTanya Smit is a lecturer of higher education and the Acting Head of the Work Integrated Learning office of the Faculty of Education at the University of Pretoria. Her research interests include pre-service teacher self-regulated professionalism, lecturer and teacher professionalism, action research, mentorship and Technical and Vocational Education. Mr Rodney StopsRodney Stops is a lecturer in the Department of Electrical Power Engineering at the Durban University of Technology. He has over 29 years of lecturing experience and has a passion for Articulation and is using research in Education and Articulation to benefit present and future students. Prof. Volker WedekindProfessor Volker Wedekind is Professor of Education and Head of the School of Education, University of Nottingham. He is the convener of the Nottingham UNESCO-UNEVOC Centre. His research focuses on the policies and practices of vocational education in developing countries.

Purpose This paper aims to determine any barriers and gaps within one community Forensic Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (FCAMHS) provision for young people presenting with risk of harm to others or involvement with the youth justice system, from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds. Design/methodology/approach This study presents a systematic review of literature into the barriers and gaps within community FCAMHS, which showed little research in the area. Because of this, referral numbers for five major cities within the Yorkshire and Humber community FCAMHS region were compared to population statistics and youth justice caution and sentencing data. Findings Comparison suggests that BAME young people are under-represented across referrals to community FCAMHS. Also, there were differences in the representation of BAME young people when compared to youth justice data across the five major cities. Research limitations/implications The lack of literature, combined with disparities in proportional representation of BAME young people within the Yorkshire and Humber FCAMHS, shows the need for a detailed study and analysis within national community FCAMHS. Practical implications More needs to be done within community FCAMHS to ensure that services are meeting the needs of young people at risk of criminalisation. Originality/value To the best of the author’s knowledge, there is currently no published literature that explores ethnic representation and access to community-based FCAMH services. Exploration within one regional service suggests that young people from BAME backgrounds may be under-represented within such services, whilst at the same time being over-represented within formal criminal justice.

This thesis employs a broad evaluative framework to examine the impact of the Youth Justice Service (YJS) on the post-intervention offending behaviour of young people on community-based court orders. The YJS is a Queensland government policy initiative that aims to monitor compliance with community-based court orders, and identify and address causes of criminal behaviour. The evaluative framework views policy, implementation and impact as distinct but related dimensions of intervention. Reflecting this framework, three primary research questions are addressed: (1) Does the YJS concept represent a goal-directed, theoretically-informed, executable and assessable juvenile crime prevention policy?, (2) Is the YJS concept realised through service delivery?, and (3) What is the effect of the YJS on future offending behaviour? Three studies, employing qualitative and quantitative methods, examined these questions. Study one examined the YJS concept, drawing on some key themes from literature on policy development and implementation, developmental and life-course criminology and developmental crime prevention. This study synthesised key policy and procedure documents around six themes, including (1) rationale, (2) goals, (3) theory, (4) service delivery model, (5) method of operation, and (6) key performance indicators. Findings indicated that the YJS concept represents only marginal adjustments from the traditional Area Office (AO) model of service delivery, and integrates few new preventative mechanisms that would foreseeably lead to change at the operational level. Moreover, it suffers from goal ambiguity, fails to incorporate some key components of best-practice crime prevention that have proven successful when working with at-risk young people, lacks sufficient process-level specificity to ensure treatment fidelity, and places heightened importance on measuring impacts that have political value rather than benefits for the clients. In the second study, an in-depth case study of the Logan Area Youth Justice Service (LAYJS) was conducted to explore how the YJS operated in reality, and as compared with the policy directive. Information was drawn from a variety of sources including interviews with staff and clients, policy and procedure documents, direct observation, case management files and staff-researcher interaction. Evidence suggested that the LAYJS was focused primarily on ensuring compliance with court orders. Several organisational factors, such as staff workloads, the statutory basis for monitoring compliance, and the capacities of staff, have meant that comparatively little attention has been directed at addressing offending behaviour. For the most part, the LAYJS employs an individualised case management process, as distinct from the collaborative, team-based model that is prescribed in the YJS concept. Caseworkers have little faith in their ability to bring about positive behavioural change in their clients, and subsequently transferred the responsibility for intervention outcomes to the client. While acknowledging the importance of families in preventing offending, caseworkers emphasised that a number of organisational tensions have prevented them from engaging families in the case management process. The final study examined the impact of the YJS on post-intervention offending, controlling for developmental risk factors and key features of the intervention process. A random sample (N=190) of clients from three YJS offices and three AOs was drawn from the population of clients who had active community-based court orders between June 1999 and December 2002. Information from Department of Communities' case management files and rearrest data from the Queensland Police Service were entered into a purpose-designed database, and analysed using bivariate and multivariate methods including logistic regression and survival analysis. High proportions of missing data on non-statutory variables suggested poor record management practices, or alternatively that operational staff do not understand the role of developmental risk and/or protective factors and social contexts in preventing offending behaviour. Results indicated that the YJS was no better than the AO at preventing recidivism, as measured at 18-months post-intervention, even after controlling for risk factors that were significantly related to recidivism. The analyses found that some unmeasured variation in service delivery, even within service types, did impact upon recidivism, supporting the hypotheses of the first study and the contention that variation in intervention practice can influence offending behaviour. The likelihood of recidivism was increased if the client was using drugs or was influenced by delinquent peers, and decreased if he stayed in school until years 11 or 12, or where caseworkers addressed familial problems. This provides some sense of programs that may be appropriate for young offenders in the context of a community-based program. It also highlights the critical importance of incorporating families into case management, not only for the purpose of providing information, but also as viable targets of intervention. Survival analyses indicated that the YJS might have had some temporary deterrent effect, although this effect had dissipated by 18-months post-intervention. This result may reflect the increased focus on ensuring compliance with court orders as found in the LAYJS case study. However, given the hypothesis that the lack of process direction will result in variable practices across offices, it cannot be assumed that all YJSs place equal importance on compliance. Overall, findings suggest that the promise that the YJS would provide an innovative model of service delivery and generate improved outcomes for young offenders has not been realised. This research has added further weight to the perspective that examines both the individual and combined impact of theory, policy and implementation for measuring client outcomes. Deficits in any of these components ultimately have a ripple effect, making it difficult to achieve the predetermined goals of the policy at the operational level.

This thesis employs a broad evaluative framework to examine the impact of the Youth Justice Service (YJS) on the post-intervention offending behaviour of young people on community-based court orders. The YJS is a Queensland government policy initiative that aims to monitor compliance with community-based court orders, and identify and address causes of criminal behaviour. The evaluative framework views policy, implementation and impact as distinct but related dimensions of intervention. Reflecting this framework, three primary research questions are addressed: (1) Does the YJS concept represent a goal-directed, theoretically-informed, executable and assessable juvenile crime prevention policy?, (2) Is the YJS concept realised through service delivery?, and (3) What is the effect of the YJS on future offending behaviour? Three studies, employing qualitative and quantitative methods, examined these questions. Study one examined the YJS concept, drawing on some key themes from literature on policy development and implementation, developmental and life-course criminology and developmental crime prevention. This study synthesised key policy and procedure documents around six themes, including (1) rationale, (2) goals, (3) theory, (4) service delivery model, (5) method of operation, and (6) key performance indicators. Findings indicated that the YJS concept represents only marginal adjustments from the traditional Area Office (AO) model of service delivery, and integrates few new preventative mechanisms that would foreseeably lead to change at the operational level. Moreover, it suffers from goal ambiguity, fails to incorporate some key components of best-practice crime prevention that have proven successful when working with at-risk young people, lacks sufficient process-level specificity to ensure treatment fidelity, and places heightened importance on measuring impacts that have political value rather than benefits for the clients. In the second study, an in-depth case study of the Logan Area Youth Justice Service (LAYJS) was conducted to explore how the YJS operated in reality, and as compared with the policy directive. Information was drawn from a variety of sources including interviews with staff and clients, policy and procedure documents, direct observation, case management files and staff-researcher interaction. Evidence suggested that the LAYJS was focused primarily on ensuring compliance with court orders. Several organisational factors, such as staff workloads, the statutory basis for monitoring compliance, and the capacities of staff, have meant that comparatively little attention has been directed at addressing offending behaviour. For the most part, the LAYJS employs an individualised case management process, as distinct from the collaborative, team-based model that is prescribed in the YJS concept. Caseworkers have little faith in their ability to bring about positive behavioural change in their clients, and subsequently transferred the responsibility for intervention outcomes to the client. While acknowledging the importance of families in preventing offending, caseworkers emphasised that a number of organisational tensions have prevented them from engaging families in the case management process. The final study examined the impact of the YJS on post-intervention offending, controlling for developmental risk factors and key features of the intervention process. A random sample (N=190) of clients from three YJS offices and three AOs was drawn from the population of clients who had active community-based court orders between June 1999 and December 2002. Information from Department of Communities' case management files and rearrest data from the Queensland Police Service were entered into a purpose-designed database, and analysed using bivariate and multivariate methods including logistic regression and survival analysis. High proportions of missing data on non-statutory variables suggested poor record management practices, or alternatively that operational staff do not understand the role of developmental risk and/or protective factors and social contexts in preventing offending behaviour. Results indicated that the YJS was no better than the AO at preventing recidivism, as measured at 18-months post-intervention, even after controlling for risk factors that were significantly related to recidivism. The analyses found that some unmeasured variation in service delivery, even within service types, did impact upon recidivism, supporting the hypotheses of the first study and the contention that variation in intervention practice can influence offending behaviour. The likelihood of recidivism was increased if the client was using drugs or was influenced by delinquent peers, and decreased if he stayed in school until years 11 or 12, or where caseworkers addressed familial problems. This provides some sense of programs that may be appropriate for young offenders in the context of a community-based program. It also highlights the critical importance of incorporating families into case management, not only for the purpose of providing information, but also as viable targets of intervention. Survival analyses indicated that the YJS might have had some temporary deterrent effect, although this effect had dissipated by 18-months post-intervention. This result may reflect the increased focus on ensuring compliance with court orders as found in the LAYJS case study. However, given the hypothesis that the lack of process direction will result in variable practices across offices, it cannot be assumed that all YJSs place equal importance on compliance. Overall, findings suggest that the promise that the YJS would provide an innovative model of service delivery and generate improved outcomes for young offenders has not been realised. This research has added further weight to the perspective that examines both the individual and combined impact of theory, policy and implementation for measuring client outcomes. Deficits in any of these components ultimately have a ripple effect, making it difficult to achieve the predetermined goals of the policy at the operational level.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
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