Factors Impacting Recidivism in Juvenile Offenders

FACTORS INFLUENCING RECIDIVISM

Factors Influencing Recidivism among Juvenile Offenders

Chapter 4: Methodology

Description of the Deliverable

The proposed project’s rationale is to reduce recidivism rates among the juveniles in their respective detention centers. For that, factors that affect recidivism are to be determined. Based on these factors, an intervention is to be devised so that effective reduction in criminal activities that affect juvenile crime should be observed. In this regard, the study would seek to adopt and propose an intervention project option.

The Rationale of Choosing the Selected Deliverable

Various explanations led to the selection of the proposed deliverable design. The primary reason for intervention research’s success as its impact on assessing an outcome variable would be investigated (Salkind, 2010). Since this study’s roots are based on the social learning theory, numerous studies have been conducted to analyze the factors that influence juvenile recidivism. However, the purpose of this proposed study is to go beyond just the identification of the factors. Developing interventions for the depreciation of recidivism’s specified factors and hence, the risk of recidivism is the primary goal.

Further, Salkind (2010) affirms that intervention research is not only the prevention of negative outcomes and avoiding its occurrence, but the detection of the cause of its desirable occurrence among the individuals under study. Examples of such intervention could be reducing anxiety symptoms in patients suffering from substance use disorders. Since this proposed study’s target population is juvenile offenders arrested again after their release from the detention center, the juvenile criminals were already the recidivism victims signified from their re-arrest. The study’s objective is to identify the factors that would help prevent recidivism and alleviate the inclination that allows recidivating again since they are at high risk of turning back to crime then. Therefore, the interventional proposed study becomes plausible as the strategies to prevent the said phenomenon should be analyzed.

Explanation of Why Other Deliverables were not Selected

The reason for not selecting other deliverables and only identifying factors influencing recidivism and the proposed intervention is that other options only provide a platform where understanding the phenomenon is encouraged. The rationales of why certain factors are and how they are conducive to recidivism are presented only; however, evaluating the intervention programs’ productiveness to mitigate those factors is not successfully used. The mitigation might either occur during their stay at the detention centers or even after they are released. The effectiveness period should be prolonged after they are released from the centers so that they are not stimulated to revert to crime, and the risk of recidivism should be minimized. Hence, the selected deliverable is intended in the proposed study and not others.

Identification of Key Stakeholders

Since the proposed project aims to have an intervention approach, the intervention manuals would be used for this purpose. An intervention manual is defined by Sidani & Braden (2011) as the document that gives particulars about the goals, mechanisms, and actions within an intervention. It also enlists what needs to be done, how it should be carried out, and the intervention’s delivery timing. As the nature of the current project is a cross-sectional study, it might be challenging to assess the participant’s progress within a specific time limit and deliver the intervention on that basis. Thus, the manual would be used to develop the intervention in which best practices and several other strategies would be incorporated.

Identification of stakeholders is significant in this process since devising suitable strategies is mandatory. The potential stakeholders would be those who deal with youth and juvenile offenders, such as detention care staff, social workers, leaders of the local area churches, and the social support firms associated with youth empowerment. It will be an additional backing if support organizations are considered in the process, like Bull City Youth Build Support Group, the Boys and Girls Club of Durham, and North Carolina Central University on-campus counseling center and Men’s Achievement Center. The counseling center would help spot the factors that the youth are dealing with so that the relevant interventions are conceived.

Screening Tool

Since the study design is cross-sectional, different survey methods would have to be developed. For example, face-to-face and telephonic interviews would be used for collecting data from various stakeholders to classify factors that lead to recidivism and devising an intervention program to reduce them. Feedback on the questionnaire could be taken from a doctor to guide the mental factors that lead a criminal to regress to illegal activities. The doctor would explain the triggers and influencers. They could be incorporated within the questionnaire for stakeholders to answer accordingly for the focus of this research.

Intervention

The intervention manual would be taken to the detention staff, church leaders, and social support organizations to give feedback on the proposed strategies and whether they would work effectually. It is necessary to evaluate the manual since the correct identification of the recidivism factors is the sole basis of the rest of the research and the expected outcomes.

Policy

Feedback on the policies that would affect the community members or the individuals would be contemplated carefully. It is imperative since the state or federal policies when dealing with juveniles are to be considered for taking precautions. These policies could be discussed with the detention center staff as they would be the closest ones knowing informed guidelines from the local or state level governments.

Adaptation to Practice Modality

Identifying and seeking feedback from the individuals who would be receiving the treatment plan is essential as they will be the ones who would have previously undergone the same treatments. They might give opinions on whether the new proposed intervention would be effective and bring a difference in their behavior.

Theoretical Framework

The relevant feedback from the identified stakeholders would be gained on what strategies they use in rehabilitation and detention centers so that the recidivism rate could be diminished. Since the roots are taken from social learning theory, the strategies that worked better than the rest would be chosen to be put together for a proposed intervention program. These stakeholders would help in validating the framework so that its testing process becomes easier in practical terms.

Methods to Obtain Information from Stakeholders

The strategy for recruiting and contacting the key stakeholders would be to contact the nearest possible reachable ones to gain information on a primary basis. The study’s objectives would be communicated with them as it is necessary to mention why their engagement is needed and considered vital (Boaz et al., 2018). It is realized that some of the stakeholders have a key role to play in the intervention program; hence, their viewpoints matter. The methods to obtain information from the identified key stakeholders in developing the final project deliverable would include face-to-face and telephonic interviews with the representatives. The representatives would be from the selected churches, social work organizations, and the supervisors in the juvenile detention facilities so that their deep insights are obtained for formulating strategies that would be effective in minimizing the risk of recidivism. The questions that might be asked could include: