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Examining the Costs and Benefits of Effective Juvenile Delinquency Programs for Youth with BD

Examining the Costs and Benefits of Effective Juvenile Delinquency Programs for Youth with BD. J effrey P oirier, Mindee O’Cummings, and Mary Quinn American Institutes for Research National Center on Education, Disability, and Juvenile Justice (EDJJ).

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Examining the Costs and Benefits of Effective Juvenile Delinquency Programs for Youth with BD

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  1. Examining the Costs and Benefits of Effective Juvenile Delinquency Programs for Youth with BD Jeffrey Poirier, Mindee O’Cummings, and Mary Quinn American Institutes for Research National Center on Education, Disability, and Juvenile Justice (EDJJ)

  2. Why Prevention? • An 18 year old is five times more likely to be arrested for a property crime than a 35 year old • In 1997, 15-19 year olds comprised 7% of the overall population but 1 out 5 arrests for violent offenses and 1 out of 3 property crime arrests • Overall, teenagers are responsible for 20-30% of all crime Source: National Bureau of Economic Research, 1999 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  3. School Failure Theory Delinquent behavior is a secondary result of the disability. • The disability is thought to lead to school failure • Poor sense of self contributes to behavior causing consequences (e.g., school suspension) • Unstructured time offers many opportunities for delinquent behavior Murray, 1977; Post, 1981 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  4. Susceptibility Theory Delinquency stems from behaviors that are a direct result of the defining characteristics of the disability • Characteristics (personal traits, cognitive deficits) lead to lack of impulse control, suggestibility, and poor social perception • Increased risk for delinquent behavior (Keilitz & Dunnivant, 1987; Murray, 1977) WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  5. Metacognitive Deficits Theory As a result of the disability, the student lacks the interpersonal skills necessary to build relationships with his or her peers • To gain social status, these students engage in behaviors to impress their peers, including delinquent behaviors (Larson, 1988; 1998; Larson & Turner, 2002) WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  6. Differential Treatment Theory Youth with disabilities commit as many delinquent acts youth without disabilities • Certain personality traits that result from their disability cause these youth to frustrate authority figures • Miscommunication often results in harsher treatments • Outcome: overrepresentation (Keilitz & Dunivant, 1987; Leone & Meisel, 1997) WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  7. What are we preventing? Left to progress without appropriate treatment, these children with behavior disorders are at heightened risk for: • Serious mental health problems; • Substance abuse; • Educational failure, including truancy and delinquency; and • Encounters with the juvenile justice system. WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  8. Serious Mental Health Problems/ Substance Abuse Research supports that children with mental health problems are at risk for • Unemployment or underemployment • In unhealthy relationships, including broken marriages • Other mental problems (e.g., schizophrenia, hyperactivity, obsessional disorders, depression, substance abuse) WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  9. Levels of Prevention Tertiary Secondary Primary WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  10. Mental Health Service Provisions • Negligence- lack of services/ no recognized need • Skimping- inadequate services/ intentions to save money • Supplier induced demand- provision of unnecessary services/ intention to make money • Indulgence- too many and often unnecessary services provided based on family insistence (Matthews, 1991) WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  11. Serious Mental Health Problems/ Substance Abuse (cont.) Children with mental health problems are often un- or under-served • 20% of children have DSM disorders • 10% of children have DSM disorders that significantly impair their functioning • 5% of children receive care for mental health problems • 1-2% receive services in specialty settings (Castello, Burns, Argold, & Leaf, 1993) WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  12. Educational Failure Risks • 51.4% of children EB/D dropped out of school, as compared to the national average of 10.7% of children • Unemployment rates for high school drop outs is 60% higher than graduates • When adults without high school degrees, over 30% earn less then the official poverty rate WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  13. Juvenile Justice System • Research has found that youth with EB/D are disproportionately involved with the juvenile justice system • 8% of all those in facilities have SLD, accounting for 42% of those with disabilities • 8% of all those in facilities have EB/D, accounting for 40% of those with disabilities WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  14. Why examine costs and benefits? • Program evaluation • Influence policymakers and global change • Decreased funding requires the more efficient and prudent use of allocated funds WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  15. Cost of Substance Abuse • Substance abuse is very costly: • “Every sector of society spends hefty sums of money shoveling up the wreckage of substance abuse and addiction.” • In 1998 more than 13% of state budgets ($81.3 billion) was spent on substance abuse • Of this amount, only 3.7 cents of each state dollar was spent on prevention or research Source: CASA, Columbia University, 2001 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  16. Cost of Substance Abuse • Two-thirds of juvenile justice costs were related to youth substance abuse Source: CASA, Columbia University, 2001 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  17. Costs of Delinquency • Important to examine costs as a consequence of non-prevention of BD • 2.4 million juvenile arrests in 2000 (Snyder, 2002) • Juveniles accounted for 9% (murders) to 33% (burglaries) of all arrests for various types of crime in 2000 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  18. Types of Costs • Juvenile justice/corrections • Lost property and wages • Medical and psychological expenses • Decreased productivity • Pain and suffering • Decreased quality of life/societal well-being (e.g., fear of crime, changing lifestyle due to risk of victimization) WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  19. Opportunity Costs • Since expenditures allocated to delinquency-related costs, fewer resources are available for education/other government services WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  20. Who incurs these costs? • Victims • Government agencies • Taxpayers • Society • Delinquent youth • Families WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  21. Victimization Costs • 23% of all U.S. households victimized • Crime victims lost $17.6 billion in direct costs in 1992 (includes losses from property theft/damage, cash losses, medical expenses, and amount of pay lost because of injury/activities related to the crime) • Loss of life is not included in this estimate Source: U.S. Department of Justice, National Crime Victimization Survey, 1994 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  22. Expenditures for the Criminal and Civil Justice System • Total: $147 billion in 1999 (police protection, corrections, and judicial/legal activities) • 309% increase from 1982-1999 • Local government funded half of these expenses (note: local government funded 44% of education costs in 1999) Source: U.S. Department of Justice, 1999 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  23. Expenditures for the Criminal and Civil Justice System • States contributed another 39% ($4.4 billion in 2000; CASA, 2002) • Criminal and civil justice expenditures comprised 7.7% of all state and local expenditures Source: U.S. Department of Justice, 1999 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  24. Costs of Juvenile Crime • Cost of juvenile crime: • Victim costs: $62,000-$250,000 • Criminal justice: $21,000-$84,000 • Total: $83,000-$335,000 • For every 10 crimes committed, only one is caught • Chronic juvenile offenders are very likely to become involved in the adult system Source: Cohen, Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 1998 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  25. Costs of Dropping Out • In 1991, annual cost of providing for youth who fail to complete high school and their families: $76 billion • Lost wage productivity: $300,000 Source: Joint Economic Committee, 1991 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  26. Cost-Benefits of Effective Prevention and InterventionSource: Washington State Institute for Public Policy, 2001 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  27. The Costs of Crime for Juvenile Offenders • Separation and isolation • In correctional settings: • Negative behaviors are often reinforced • Higher rates of sexual victimization and suicide • For youth with cognitive disabilities, it is difficult to un-learn the prison experience • Lack of special education services and an absence of skill-based programming WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  28. The Cost of Ignoring Families • Family involvement (surrogates, extended family, etc.) and stability are critical to the success of prevention and corrections programs • When parents do not have the skills/knowledge to advocate for their child’s learning/mental health needs, their children are more likely to drop out of school and become involved in the justice system WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  29. Parent Training • Costs • $500/year per family for instruction and supplies • $2500/year per family for program management • Benefits • 157 serious crimes prevented per million dollars spent Source: RAND, 1996 WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  30. High/Scope Preschool Programs • Benefits • fewer acts of misconduct • higher grade point averages • higher rates of employment • lower rates of welfare dependence WWW.EDJJ.ORG

  31. High/Scope Preschool Programs • Costs • $39,278 per child • $964 increased need for funds for secondary education programs • Savings • reduced need for special education • reduced crime rate WWW.EDJJ.ORG

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  33. Conclusion • Prevention/intervention programs for at-risk youth will not eliminate juvenile crime, but can reduce it and will bring net benefits to both society and the juvenile • Have a long-term vision when considering the costs of prevention programs • Consider the impact of incarceration on juvenile offenders and youth with BD WWW.EDJJ.ORG

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