OJJDP Releases Research on Youth's Mental Health Needs and Long-Term Outcomes After Detention

WASHINGTON, Sept. 8, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) released four research bulletins based on findings from the Northwestern Juvenile Project, which investigates the mental health needs and long-term outcomes of juvenile detainees.

The study found that more than 45 percent of male juveniles and nearly 30 percent of female juveniles had one or more psychiatric disorders five years after they were first detained and most reported they experienced barriers to seeking mental health services. The authors also found the mortality rate for delinquent male youth to be more than four times—and for delinquent female youth nearly eight times—the rate for youth in the general population.

The Northwestern Juvenile Project analyzed data from a randomly selected sample of 1,829 youth arrested and detained in Cook County, Illinois, between 1995 and 1998. The study is the first large-scale prospective longitudinal study of psychiatric and behavioral disorders in a diverse sample of juvenile detainees. The authors are currently re-interviewing study participants to examine the long-term impact of their involvement in the juvenile justice system on their transition to adulthood.  The four bulletins released today are:          

Detained Youth Processed in Juvenile and Adult Court: Psychiatric Disorders and Mental Health Needs
www.ojjdp.gov/pubs/248283.pdf

Perceived Barriers to Mental Health Services Among Detained Youth
www.ojjdp.gov/pubs/248522.pdf

Psychiatric Disorders in Youth After Detention
www.ojjdp.gov/pubs/246824.pdf

Violent Death in Delinquent Youth After Detention
www.ojjdp.gov/pubs/248408.pdf  

The Northwestern Juvenile Project complete bulletins series and e-books are available at: 
www.ojjdp.gov/publications/index.html. For questions on the research, contact Linda A. Teplin, Ph.D., at [email protected].

About the Office of Justice Programs (OJP)
OJP, headed by Assistant Attorney General Karol V. Mason, provides federal leadership in developing the nation's capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice and assist victims. OJP has six components: the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of Justice Statistics; the National Institute of Justice; the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; the Office for Victims of Crime and the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering and Tracking. More information about OJP can be found at www.ojp.gov.

SOURCE Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs

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