Conditions Associated with Identification of Mentally Ill Youths in Juvenile Detention

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.

Psychiatric problems and suicidal behaviour in incarcerated adolescents in the Islamic Republic of Iran

“…Not considering subsyndromal group, nearly 70% of the adolescents in our study had at least 1 current psychiatric disorder: 14% had 1 disorder (21% life-time), 28% had 2 disorders (23% life-time) and 28% had 3 or more disorders (45% life-time). These findings are similar or sometimes higher than found in American adolescent detainees [3,5] (Table 1). More than two-thirds of incarcerated adolescents had at least 1 psychiatric disorder [5].…”

“…These findings are similar or sometimes higher than found in American adolescent detainees [3,5] (Table 1). More than two-thirds of incarcerated adolescents had at least 1 psychiatric disorder [5]. Similar high prevalence rates have been reported from the Netherlands, Canada, Belgium, Denmark and Brazil [2,4,6,15,16], (Table 1).…”

“…A systematic review and meta-regression analysis of 25 surveys found that nearly all of them reported that over two-thirds of the adolescents suffered from psychiatric disorders [1]. Rates in other studies in the USA, Canada and Europe are also high (Table 1) [2][3][4][5][6]. Specifically the systematic review indicated that the rate of psychotic illness, manic episodes, major depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and conduct disorder in adolescents in detention and correctional facilities were 3.3%, 3.1%, 10.6%, 11.7% and 52.8% respectively [1].…”

Mental Health and Substance-Related Treatment Utilization, Dropout, and Continuity of Care among Detained Adolescents: A 14-Year Longitudinal Study

“…Approximately 15%-20% of DAs are uninsured and 15 cannot afford to utilize mental health services in the community (Gupta et al, 2005;Maschi et al, 2008), leaving the juvenile justice system as one of the only avenues to access treatment services (Pumariega et al, 1999;Rogers et al, 2006). This is problematic, given that services within detention facilities are not always available and/or high quality.…”

Prevalencia de trastornos psiquiátricos en adolescentes infractores de ley en Chile

“…En el mundo se ha evidenciado una alta morbilidad psiquiátrica en adolescentes infractores de ley [2][3][4][5][6] . Uno de los estudios más grandes en Estados Unidos de Norteamérica reunió una muestra de 1.829 adolescentes entre 10 a 18 años, detenidos en el condado de Cook (Illinois).…”