Predictors of sexual and reproductive health among girls involved in the juvenile legal system: The influence of resources, race, and ethnicity

Exploring the needs of girls of color in the juvenile legal system: A latent class analysis

“…A third of our sample identified a need for emotional and social resources, which are commonly included in existing needs assessments and programming, suggesting that these are still important for girls. Additionally, a subsample (15%) of girls indicated needing healthcare services (e.g., reproductive care, mental health) which aligns with gender‐specific pathways to system‐involvement (Berezin et al, 2022) and an area of focus in many gender‐responsive programs for girls (Javdani & Allen, 2016). This suggests these areas continue to be important targets for promoting resource access, and indeed may not be adequately addressed by current services.…”

“…Given that schools often serve as a hub for mental health and economic services, these needs also may be connected (Belknap & Cady, 2008). The fact that much of our sample needed these resources and that access to economic and educational resources has a profound effect on girls' own health outcomes (Berezin et al, 2022) suggests that interventions should prioritize material, as well as social and emotional resources to take a more holistic approach to girls' wellbeing. This also suggests that our conceptualizations of girls' experiences should be more explicitly situated in their contextual constraints (e.g., availability of treatment and educational opportunities) and focused on promoting contexts in which they are empowered to critically evaluate and access resources.…”

“…As a result, they are widely considered to be a “high‐need, low‐risk” group (Sherman, 2005) that faces barriers to accessing economic, social, and material resources to meet their needs, both in community and juvenile legal settings (Belknap & Cady, 2008). Despite this recognition, researchers have struggled to develop programming, in community or juvenile justice settings, that take an adequately contextual lens to supporting system‐impacted girls of color (Berezin et al, 2022; Granski et al, 2020). In this paper, we examine the importance of understanding resource needs for girls of color along the spectrum of juvenile legal involvement (i.e., as a pathway to arrest, while in detention and placement facilities, on probation or re‐entering their communities).…”