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Abstract
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VioLit summary:
OBJECTIVE:
The intent of this article by Neilson et al. was to examine the developmental, behavioral, and follow-up data on adolescents from a residential facility.
METHODOLOGY:
The authors employed a quasi-experimental, longitudinal design by examining all of the adolescents in the treatment program according to their participation in substance abuse, physical aggression, firesetting, sexual aggression, self-destruction, and delinquency. The subjects had been placed in the treatment program due to the danger they presented to themselves or others and data were collected on the 139 adolescents that were discharged since the program's inception, with follow-up data collection every 3 months after discharge. The authors identified the acting out patterns of the population and classified them according to the number of acting out categories their behavior assumed up to the time of treatment, according to the six categories listed above. All patients acted out either once (27), twice (52), three times (31) or four or more times (29). Those in the fourth group were compared to the other three in terms of the nature, duration, and timing of their separation from their parents.
FINDINGS/DISCUSSION:
For those subjects who were separated from their parents between 0-12 months and between 36-72 months, the relationship between group membership and separation was very strong (p<.01 and p<.02, respectively). For those who had been separated between 12-24 months and 24-36 months, the relationship between group membership and separation was weak. The failure or success of the treatment for each individual was determined by their status during the most recent follow-up. Failure was defined as psychiatric hospitalization, placement in a correctional institution or placement in a secure treatment program. Success included independent living, living in their parents' home, group living, or military service. In category one (21 males and 7 females), 89% were successful; in category two (29 males and 22 females), 75% were successful; in category three (17 males and 14 females), 58% were successful; and in category four (26 males and 3 females), none were successful. The correlation between parental separation and patterns of acting out in group four indicated that the subjects had a weakened capacity for subsequent object relations. Among this group, however, those who suffered parental separation during their first year of life did not demonstrate the same degree of internal tensions and stresses as those who experienced the separation after more extensive parental bonding had occurred. The typical group four adolescent was male, came to the clinician via the juvenile court system with a long history of acting out, and had antisocial behavior recorded as early as five or six years of age. This individual was rarely depressed, impulsive in his aggressive acts, and typically unsuccessful in gaining anything from them. He was likely to have suffered early trauma such as neglect or abuse, lacked basic human trust and empathy, and he tended to superficially adapt to his treatment environment and to resume his former pattern of multiple-category acting-out after discharge.
AUTHORS' RECOMMENDATIONS:
The authors suggested that multiple-category acting-out adolescents be treated as a clinically distinct group. They also recommended that future research address the special needs of this subgroup and the early assessment of risk due especially to parental separation.
(CSPV Abstract - Copyright © 1992-2007 by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, Institute of Behavioral Science, Regents of the University of Colorado)
KW - Residential Treatment
KW - Juvenile Violence
KW - Juvenile Delinquency
KW - Juvenile Crime
KW - Juvenile Substance Use
KW - Juvenile Behavior
KW - Juvenile Problem Behavior
KW - Juvenile Treatment
KW - Juvenile Offender
KW - Juvenile Aggression
KW - Treatment Program
KW - Aggression Effects
KW - Aggression Treatment
KW - Alcohol Use Effects
KW - Alcohol Use Treatment
KW - Substance Use Effects
KW - Substance Use Treatment
KW - Drug Use Effects
KW - Drug Use Treatment
KW - Delinquency Effects
KW - Delinquency Treatment
KW - Juvenile Sexual Behavior
KW - Behavior Effects
KW - Behavior Treatment
KW - Crime Effects
KW - Crime Treatment
KW - Violence Effects
KW - Violence Treatment
KW - Violence Intervention
KW - Mental Health Treatment
KW - Mental Health Institution
KW - Mental Health Patient
KW - Patient Treatment
KW - Juvenile Patient
Language: en |