Determining the Primacy of Substance Use Disorders Among Juvenile Offenders

Abstract

Any thorough evaluation of a juvenile offender should include an assessment of the role alcohol and drugs have played in the offending behavior as well as in the youth's overall adjustment. The dilemma facing an evaluator is how to best determme primacy. That is, is the youth's behavioral disorder primarily a function of substance use, or is the abuse of chemicals primarily a manifestation of an overall deviant lifestyle? The goal of this article is to offer a framework for understanding the diagnostic issues relevant to juvenile offending and substance abuse as well as to provide a guide for treatment planning. A summary of diagnostic risk factors for both substance abuse and serious juvenile offending are concretized into a decision tree meaningful to the diagnostic and treatment selection process at hand.