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This essay analyzes Colson Whitehead's 2019 novel The Nickel Boys through the prism of the tension between concealment and unveiling, and its impact on the text's rhetorical, narrative and ideological structure. The novel focuses on its main character's experience of confinement at Nickel School, a juvenile correction institution. Like most prison narratives, it conceptualizes such experience in terms of an opposition between outside and inside, sliding over the legal and ethical dialectics between freedom and confinement. Thus, a rhetorical structure is articulated in the text around these and other parallel binaries: visible-concealed, public-secret/private. My interpretation of the novel relates these dichotomies to the pattern of confinement and redemption which is typical of the African American prison narrative. Furthermore, in terms of narrative progression, the text is organized as a structure of unveiling, in which the delayed disclosure of key information regarding the main characters forces a reconsideration of the entire sequence of events organized through causal relations. The novel relies on the mechanism of the "surprise ending" in order to solve its structural tensions, provoking not only the reconstruction of its lineal sequence, but a readjustment in the readers' ethical judgment of what has been previously read. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several states initiated school finance reforms during the post-1990s, commonly named the "adequacy" era, with the primary purpose of providing adequate funding for low-income school districts. This article uses the space–time variation in court-ordered reforms in this period as shocks to school spending and investigates its effects on juvenile arrest rates and risky behaviors. Using a 2SLS-DDD approach and a wide range of data sets, I find that exposure to reform reduces the juvenile arrest rates, increases the likelihood of high school graduation, increases the time spent on educational activities, and reduces risky behaviors at schools. A 10 |$\%$| rise in real per-pupil spending is associated with 7.4 fewer arrests per 1,000 in the population aged 15–19. This rise is equivalent to a reduction of roughly 90,806 arrests annually. It also implies a minimum of 20 |$\%$| return in school spending due to the avoided costs of deterred crimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microglia depletion did not alter the established binocularity of neurons in V1 (Juvenile Control = 0.45 ± 0.08 vs Adult Control = 0.30 ± 0.08 cpd, vs Adult PLX5622 = 0.36 ± 0.11). Histogram of ocular dominance index for excitatory (e) and inhibitory (f) neurons in juveniles (grey), adults (blue), and mice lacking microglia (red). [Extracted from the article]

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The biology of early life adversity explores how social experiences early in life affect physical and psychological health and well-being throughout the life course. In our previous work, we argued that narratives emerging from and about this research field tend to focus on harm and lasting damage with little discussion of reversibility and resilience. However, as the Science and Technology Studies literature has demonstrated, scientific research can be actively taken up and transformed as it moves through social worlds. Drawing on fieldwork with actors in education and juvenile corrections in the US Pacific Northwest, we found that they employed the biology of early life adversity not only to promote prevention but also to argue for changes within their own institutions that would allow them to better serve children and youth who have experienced adversity and trauma. Our study shows that biosocial narratives are neither inherently liberatory nor inherently oppressive but that the situated narrative choreographies in which they are enrolled are essential for their political effects. In our case, we show how these biosocial narratives have been articulated with knowledge and practices from restorative justice and trauma-informed care to reimagine the social meaning of the biology of early life adversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Youth with a mental illness are incarcerated at much higher rates than youth without a psychological diagnosis. Correctional officers serve as a source of daily interaction for these youth and are required to manage juvenile mental health symptoms with minimal training. When staff do not fully understand mental health needs or hold stigmatic perceptions, youth may experience negative consequences. Being aware of officer perceptions of juvenile mental health issues has the potential to improve monitoring and treatment of youth at correctional facilities. This study took place at a Midwestern juvenile correctional facility--the only one in the state. Officer attitudes surrounding mental health, mental health training, and treatment needs were assessed among a sample of juvenile correctional officers employed at the facility. Findings suggest overall positive perceptions of juvenile mental health issues, but suggest the need for increased mental health training for juvenile correctional officers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For more than 120 years, juvenile justice law has not substantively defined the core questions in most delinquency cases--when should the state prosecute children rather than divert them from the court system (the intake decision), and what should the state do with children once they are convicted (the sentencing decision)? Instead, the law has granted certain legal actors wide discretion over these decisions, namely prosecutors at intake and judges at sentencing. This Article identifies and analyzes an essential reform trend changing that reality: legislation, enacted in at least eight states in the 2010s, to limit when children can be prosecuted rather than diverted, and when and for how long they may be incarcerated or kept on probation based on the specific offense alleged or adjudicated. These reforms are a sharp turn for juvenile law. Contrary to the field's long emphasis on discretionary decisions not legally tethered to specific offenses, the reforms depend on the charges alleged or proven against a child, and limit judges' authority at disposition and prosecutors' at intake. This Article fills a gap in the academic literature, which has previously focused on recent reforms to criminal, not juvenile, court sentencing of children. Recent juvenile court reforms prevent prosecutors and judges from using wide discretion to incarcerate children for petty offenses, follow social science research demonstrating how overly punitive actions undermine rehabilitative goals, and provide important checks and balances on what are often the most important decisions in individual cases. These juvenile court reforms also enhance the importance of plea bargaining, and thus risk creating the same harms as have been documented with plea bargaining in the criminal justice system. This Article argues that risk is mitigated by limitations on prosecutors' leverage and that future reforms should include further checks on that leverage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-quality correctional education provided to juvenile offenders is crucial in helping these youth transition back into the public school system. The set of guiding principles and best practices for providing high-quality education in the juvenile justice setting are vital to understanding when working with these youths. An update on the progress of juvenile justice reform in the state of Kentucky is conducted that explores reported data over a three-year span and examines how well Kentucky is adhering to guidelines set forth by the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice. Findings suggest although correctional education and transition services are provided to all students, there needs to be improvement to better increase the chances of rehabilitation including a reduction in recidivism rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A national study of clinical directors examined professional development (PD) focused on mental health provided to professionals in juvenile justice facilities for adjudicated youth. A total of 85 clinical directors responded to a mail survey (45% return rate). The survey questions related to (a) topics of staff training and the basis for choosing topics, (b) which professionals participated in each PD topic, (c) training format and frequency of PD, (d) recommended attributes of PD, (e) methods of evaluating PD, and (f) adequacy of PD and how can it be improved. For each topic, PD was typically provided once per year and face to face, rather than online. PD participation rates were commonly in the 30% and 40% ranges for professionals other than clinical directors and counselors, with teachers, correctional officers, administrators, and teaching assistants receiving PD the least. Rarely did PD include recommended attributes of PD, and it was commonly viewed as ineffective. Implications for research and practice related to PD and its relationship to youth reentry from juvenile justice facilities are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Borrowed from England and Wales, the Chinese Appropriate Adult Scheme involves a dynamic of selective adaptation. This article analyses two salient features of the appropriate adult scheme within the Chinese context, in comparison with its counterpart in England and Wales: its complementarity of the juvenile's parent, and the passive role that appropriate adults play during pretrial interrogations. Drawing upon empirical evidence, the article argues that the transplanted Chinese appropriate adult scheme has failed to oversee the legality of interrogations, nor does it provide adequate safeguards for juvenile suspects. The concept of vulnerability that lies at the heart of the appropriate adult safeguard in England and Wales appears to be lost in translation. Rather than providing a safeguard for juveniles at their most vulnerable, the appropriate adult is more concerned with indulging the needs of the interrogators in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is emerging evidence that the performance of risk assessment instruments is weaker when used for clinical decision‐making than for research purposes. For instance, research has found lower agreement between evaluators when the risk assessments are conducted during routine practice. We examined the field interrater reliability of the Short‐Term Assessment of Risk and Treatability: Adolescent Version (START:AV). Clinicians in a Dutch secure youth care facility completed START:AV assessments as part of the treatment routine. Consistent with previous literature, interrater reliability of the items and total scores was lower than previously reported in non‐field studies. Nevertheless, moderate to good interrater reliability was found for final risk judgments on most adverse outcomes. Field studies provide insights into the actual performance of structured risk assessment in real‐world settings, exposing factors that affect reliability. This information is relevant for those who wish to implement structured risk assessment with a level of reliability that is defensible considering the high stakes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article underscores the litany of problems that arise for significant others when a juvenile is convicted of murder. It focuses on how these individuals confront the precise nature of their child's criminality while simultaneously defending themselves against a series of attacks from a variety of intra- and extra-familial sources. A major conclusion of the article is that murderers' relatives disappear into an eternal vortex of guilt, shame and anger with little, if any, formal or informal support as a means to manage or recover from the debilitating stigma and strain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We explore the applicability of General Strain Theory to juvenile substance use. In doing so, we offer three advances over prior work. First, we put forward the concept of "problem substance use" to move beyond frequency-based and more medicalized conceptions of the phenomenon toward a conceptualization that views substance use as problematic when it disrupts social relationships and expectations and when it reflects a loss of self-control. Second, we employ a dataset that permits us to explore how strains originating in different life domains influence problem substance use as well as how negative emotions and personal coping resources mediate the relationship between strain and problem substance use. Third, we move beyond prior work by comparing how strain and strain mediators operate differently in schools, alternative learning centers, and juvenile correctional facilities. We find strong effects of the strain variables and strain mediators indicated by General Strain Theory and evidence that alternative learning centers and juvenile correction facilities are associated with especially high odds of problem substance use even when strain and other variables are controlled. We conclude by discussing the limitations of current work and the implications for next steps in the strain-substance use research literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incarcerated youth have histories of high rates of childhood traumatic experiences which may correlate with sensory processing patterns and increased violent behavior. This mixed methods study explored the relationship between these variables as well as functional benefits of sensory-based occupational therapy treatment for incarcerated youth. Significant correlations were found between several pairs of variables and key-results showed youth who participated in occupational therapy had fewer violent behaviors. Client voices affirmed that occupational therapy reduced violence, provided support, and gave hope for the future. These findings suggest occupational therapy intervention help reduce violent behavior and promote safety in juvenile correctional facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This research tests the psychometric performance of the Vanderbilt ADHD Diagnostic Teacher Rating Scale (VADTRS) completed by juvenile corrections (JC) staff. Method: With institutional review board (IRB) approval and appropriate consents/assents, data were collected from case managers (n = 18), teachers (n = 9), youth (n = 261), and an administrative database. Separate psychometric analyses were conducted for case managers and teachers. Results: For both respondent groups, 2-week retest reliability and internal consistency were high for all four VADTRS subscales, and confirmatory factor analysis suggested fit with previously reported VADTRS subscale structure. Significant correlations of VADTRS with respective Revised Behavior Problem Checklist subscale scores indicated good concurrent validity. Discriminative validity was strong for ADHD, but not for conduct subscales. Interrater agreement was poor, similar as reported in other settings. Conclusion: Acceptable VADTRS psychometric performance among two JC staff groups supports guideline-consistent practice of obtaining standardized rating scale information from JC staff to enhance the quality of ADHD treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Facility-wide Tiered Fidelity Inventory (FW-TFI) is a treatment fidelity tool used to evaluate implementation of positive behavior interventions and support (PBIS) framework systems, data, and practices at Tiers I, II, and III in residential and juvenile facilities where the needs of the children and youth are served within 24-hour/7-day a week service delivery models. This manuscript details the development process undertaken to adapt the School-wide Tiered Fidelity Inventory for use when PBIS is implemented across all settings by all staff of a facility. A three-stage process, involving a representative sample of national stakeholders, is detailed, with each phase briefly described along with ideas shared and decisions made by the stakeholders. We offer two illustrative examples of the FW-TFI process undertaken and the data gleaned from implementation with a hypothetical therapeutic residential hospital and residential juvenile facility. We conclude with practice and policy implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents research on the history of juvenile prisoner labor and industry in Point Puer which was operated as a carceral institution for the training of young inmates by offering trade and professional training. It mentions information on the prisoner labour systems in Port Arthur penal settlement. It also mentions findings of the research.

Identifying risk factors of institutional misconduct among juvenile offenders is important in curbing costs and consequences of these infractions. Research shows low educational attainment and poor academic achievement are consistently related to delinquency and crime. Yet, no research has examined whether these educational variables are associated with institutional misconduct among juveniles. Official records and interviews yielded information on the educational characteristics and institutional misconduct of 349 juvenile prisoners in a California facility. Negative binomial regression analysis was employed to examine hypothesized relationships. Results indicate that graduating high school significantly predicts institutional misconduct. Implications for juvenile corrections policies, including the importance of assisting juvenile detainees in obtaining their high school diploma, and directions for future research are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we assessed the feasibility and social validity of an adapted approach to positive behavior interventions and supports (PBIS) implementation in secure juvenile facilities. The authors developed a comprehensive model of facility-wide positive behavior interventions and supports (FW-PBIS) for use in secure juvenile correctional facilities, both detention and long term, as well as state and privately run. FW-PBIS leadership team members that included all major facility roles (education, corrections, mental health, medical, recreation) participated in staff development activities and implemented the advocated approaches over the course of the study. We assessed the fidelity, feasibility, and social validity of FW-PBIS in a repeated-measures evaluation study across 50 secure juvenile facilities. We collected intervention fidelity data using a version of the School-Wide Evaluation Tool modified to reflect the unique features of secure juvenile facilities. We also gathered behavioral incident data from the facilities, but it was not possible to combine these data across sites due to the vast differences in data collection, definitions/classifications, and storage systems from state to state. Results indicated that all participating facilities were able to achieve acceptable FW-PBIS implementation fidelity. Staff rated the intervention as acceptable, feasible, and were willing to implement FW-PBIS practices. Staff members also reported gains in sense of efficacy in their roles. Results are discussed in terms of limitations of the current study, future research, and practice needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the history of juvenile justice in Utah. Topics covered include the passage of House Bill 239 Juvenile Justice Amendments in 2017, the 1966 watershed case of Kent v. United States, and the establishment of the Utah Juvenile Justice Working Group in 2014 by the Utah Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice (UCCJJ) to give recommendations on how to improve Utah's juvenile justice system.

The article focuses on the life and legacy of Otto Wood, an early 20th-century Appalachian outlaw whose bank-robbing, prison-escaping ways became legendary. It mentions his earliest run-ins with the law included a variety of offenses, ranging from multiple thefts of firearms from local hardware stores to the stealing of a boat on the Yadkin River. It also mentions Wood was one of the first juveniles from western North Carolina sent to the Stonewall Jackson Training School.

The purpose of this article is to extend the existing literature on the workplace experiences of staff who work with juvenile offenders. We do this by assessing the extent of secondary trauma among a sample of juvenile detention officers and juvenile probation officers, and examine whether or not predictors of secondary trauma differ by position. Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression results based on a survey of 298 staff reveal that secondary trauma is relatively low among both juvenile detention officers and juvenile court/probation officers. Additionally, results indicate predictors of secondary trauma differ for each of these job positions. Experiencing threat or harm from offenders increased secondary trauma for detention officers but not for probation/court officers. However, having a higher level of education and input into decision-making decreased secondary trauma for probation/court officers, but not for detention officers. Greater support from coworkers led to decreased secondary trauma for both detention and probation/court officers. Implications for detention and probation agencies include efforts to improve supervisor and coworker support, as well as debriefing sessions after threat of harm incidents have occurred. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the dicussion on manuscripts authored by graduate faculty and students at the University of Alabama showing contributions to the literature in the field of correctional education.