Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Conditions Associated with Identification of Mentally Ill Youths in Juvenile Detention

  • Published:
Community Mental Health Journal Aims and scope Submit manuscript

ABSTRACT

The current study examines the prevalence and severity of psychiatric symptoms in incarcerated youth. A random sample of youth ages 13–17 who were referred for mental health services (n=120) and not referred for services (n=120) at a juvenile detention facility were studied. Psychopathology was evaluated using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children and the Child Behavior Checklist. Ninety-six percent of referred youth and 69% of non-referred youth had one or more psychiatric diagnoses. Co-morbidity was common in both groups. The findings suggest that youths in the juvenile justice system have noteworthy psychopathology that often remains unidentified.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Achenbach T. M. (1991a). Manual for the youth self-report and 1991 profile. Burlington University of Vermont Department of Psychiatry, Vermont

    Google Scholar 

  • Achenbach T. M. (1991b). Manual for the child behavior checklist/4–18 and 1991 profile. University of Vermont Department of Psychiatry, Burlington Vermont

    Google Scholar 

  • American Psychiatric Association (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders 4th edition (DSM-IV). American Psychiatric Association, Washington DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Armistead L., Wierson M., Forehand R., Frame C. (1992). Psychopathology in incarcerated juvenile delinquents: Does it extend beyond externalizing problems? Adolescence 27: 309–314

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Atkins D., Pumariega A., Rogers K., Montgomery L., Nybro C., Jeffers G., Sease F. (1999). Mental health and incarcerated youth I: Prevalence and nature of psychopathology. Journal of Child and Family Studies 8: 193–204

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barnum R., Famularo R., Bunshaft D., Fenton T. (1989). Clinical evaluation of juvenile delinquents: Who gets court referred? Bulletin of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law 17: 335–344

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Barnum R., Keilitz I. (1992). Issues in systems interactions affecting mentally disordered juvenile offenders. Responding to the Mental Health Needs of Youth in the Juvenile Justice System. The National Coalition for the Mentally Ill in the Criminal Justice System, Seattle

    Google Scholar 

  • Barton W. (1976). Discretionary decision-making in juvenile justice. Crime and Delinquency 22: 470–480

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Casper R. C., Belanoff J., Offer D. (1996). Gender differences, but no racial group differences, in self-reported psychiatric symptoms in adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent-Psychiatry 35: 500–508

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Center for Mental Health Services (2000). 1998 Survey of Mental Health Services in Juvenile Justice Facilities. Mental Health, United States 2000. Washington D.C.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration.

  • Coccozza J., Skowyra K. (2000). Youth with mental disorders: Issues and emerging responses. Journal of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention 7: 3–13

    Google Scholar 

  • Cohen R., Parmelee D., Irwin L., Weisz J., Howard P., Purcell P., Best A. (1990). Characteristics of children and adolescents in a psychiatric hospital and a corrections facility. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 29: 909–913

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Council on Scientific Affairs (1990). Health status of detained and incarcerated youths. Journal of the American Medical Association 263: 987–991

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dembo R. (1996) Problems among youths entering the juvenile justice system, their service needs and innovative approaches to address them. Substance Use and Misuse 31: 81–94

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Duclos C., Beals J., Novins D., Martin C., Jewett C., Manson S. (1998). Prevalence of common psychiatric disorders among American Indian adolescent detainees. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 37: 866–873

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Elliott D., Huizinga D., Menard S. (1989). Multiple problem youth: Delinquency, substance abuse and mental health. Springer Verlag, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Evens C. C., VanderStoep A. (1997). II. Risk factors for juvenile justice system referral among children in a public health system. Journal of Mental Health Administration 24: 443–455

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Heffron W., Pumariega A., Fallon T., Carter D. (2003). Youth in the juvenile justice system. In: Pumariega A.J., Winters N.C. (eds). Handbook of community-based systems of care: The new child & adolescent psychiatry. Jossey Bass Publishers, San Francisco, California, pp 224–249

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaplan S., Busner J. (1992). A note on racial bias in the admission of children and adolescents to state mental health facilities versus correctional facilities in New York. American Journal of Psychiatry 149: 768–772

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lewis D., Shanok S., Cohen R., Kligfeld M., Frisone G. (1980). Race bias in the diagnosis and disposition of violent adolescents. American Journal of Psychiatry 137: 1211–1216

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • McCabe K., Yeh M., Hough R., Landsverk J., Hurlburt M., Culver S., Reynolds B. (1999). Racial/ethnic representation across five public sectors of care for youth. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders 7: 72–82

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McManus M., Alessi N. E., Grapentime W. L., Brickman A. (1984). Psychiatric disturbance in serious delinquents. Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry 23: 602–615

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neighbors B., Kempton T., Forehand R. (1992). Co-occurrence of substance abuse with conduct, anxiety, and depression disorders in juvenile delinquents. Addictive Behaviors 17: 379–386

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Otto R., Greenstein J., Johnson M., Friedman R. (1992). Prevalence of mental disorders among youth in the juvenile justice system. Responding to the Mental Health Needs of Youth in the Juvenile Justice System. The National Coalition for the Mentally Ill in the Criminal Justice System, Seattle

    Google Scholar 

  • Pumariega A. J., Atkins D. L., Rogers K. M., Montgomery L., et al. (1999). Mental health and incarcerated youth: Prevalence and nature of psychopathology. Journal of Child and Family Studies 8: 205–215

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rogers K., Zima B., Powell E., Pumariega A. (2001). Who is referred to mental health services in the juvenile justice system? Journal of Child and Family Studies 10: 485–494

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shaffer D., Fisher P., Dulcan M., Davies M. (1996). The NIMH diagnostic interview schedule for children (DISC-2): Description, acceptability, prevalences, and performance in the MECA study. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 35: 865–877

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Shanok S., Lewis D. (1977). Juvenile court versus child guidance referral: Psychosocial and parental factors. American Journal of Psychiatry 134: 1130–1133

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Snyder H., Sickmund M. (1999). Juvenile offenders and victims: A national report. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Stata Corporation (1995). Stata Statistical Software. (Version 5.0). College Station, TX: Stata Corporation.

  • Teplin, L., Abram, K., & McClelland, G. (2001). Comorbidity among detained females: Implications for policy in the juvenile justice and mental health systems. paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology. Atlanta, November 2001.

  • Teplin L. A., Abram K. M., McClellend G. M., Dulcan M. K., Mericle A. A. (2002) Psychiatric Disorders in Youth in Juvenile Detention. Archives of General Psychiatry 59: 1133–43

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Timmons-Mitchell J., Brown C., Schulz S. C., Webster E. S., Underwood L. A., Semple W. E. (1997). Comparing the mental health needs of female and male incarcerated juvenile delinquents. Behavioral Sciences and the Law 15: 195–202

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • United States Court of Appeals (1997). http://www.law.emory.edu/4circuit/may97/961950.p.html

  • VanderStoep A., Evens C., Taub J. (1997). Risk of juvenile justice system referral among children in a public mental health system. Journal of Mental Health Administration 24: 428–442

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Vaughan T., Pumariega A. J., Klaehn R. (2003). Systems of care under legal mandates. In: Pumariega A. J., Winters N. C. (eds). Handbook of community-based systems of care: the new child & adolescent psychiatry. Jossey Bass Publishers, San Francisco, California, pp 414–431

    Google Scholar 

  • Wasserman G., McReynolds L., Lucas C., Fisher P., Santos, L. (2002). The Voice DISC-IV with incarcerated male youths: Prevalence of Disorder. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 41: 314–321

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Westendorp F., Brink K., Roberson M., Ortiz I. (1986). Variables which differentiate placement of adolescents into juvenile justice or mental health systems. Adolescence 21: 23–37

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wordes, M, Bynum T. S., Corley C. J. (1994). Locking up youth: The impact of race on detention decisions. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 31: 149–165

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Additional information

Kenneth M. Rogers is associated with the University of Maryland School of Medicine, 701 West Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.

Andres J. Pumariega is associated with East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, TN.

D. Lanette Atkins and Steven P. Cuffe are associated with the University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC.

This study was funded by Grant K12 MH00990 from NIMH (Kenneth B. Wells, MD, Principal Investigator) and the Fullerton Foundation, Gaffney, SC (Andres J. Pumariega, MD, Principal Investigator).

The authors thank Harry Wright, MD, MBA and Paul Adams, MD for their thoughtful critique of this manuscript.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Rogers, K.M., Pumariega, A.J., Atkins, D.L. et al. Conditions Associated with Identification of Mentally Ill Youths in Juvenile Detention. Community Ment Health J 42, 25–40 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-005-9001-z

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-005-9001-z

KEYWORDS

Navigation