Preventing Adolescents From Entering the Juvenile Justice System

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Substance Use; Delinquency
• Interventions: Behavioral: CCP+MDFT; Behavioral: CCP+SAU

• Registration Number: NCT02147743
• Lead Sponsor: University of Miami

Brief Summary

This randomized controlled study tests an innovative juvenile diversion model that integrates evidence-based family therapy.Immediate and longer term effects of the family intervention will be compared to Services As Usual with 120 adolescents participating in Miami-Dade's Civil Citation Program.

Detailed Description

This study proposes to rigorously test the innovative Civil Citation Program (CCP)with an integrated evidence-based family intervention, Multidimensional Family Therapy\[MDFT\](Liddle, 2002).

The study sample includes youth referred to the CCP throughout Miami-Dade county and who according to CCP screening are rated as high risk for re-offending. Youth are 12-17 years old with a first or second misdemeanor charge (excluding any gang, violence, or sex crimes charge). Nearly all (97%) of these youth are ethnic minorities (Hispanic and African American). They are at risk for school failure, substance use, and chronic delinquency due to drug availability in their communities, poor family functioning, peer drug use/delinquency, and school failure / disengagement.

120 youth who enter the Civil Citation Program and are eligible for the study will be assigned to one of the two interventions: CCP+SAU or the experimental intervention, CCP+MDFT.

The study asks a classical services research question(Compton et al, 2005) - does the addition of a family therapy intervention, multidimensional family therapy, into an existing diversion program significantly enhance the program outcomes in key outcome domains: recidivism, substance use, delinquency, school and family functioning.

Basic Information
|
Recruitment & Eligibility
|
Study & Design
|
Trial Locations

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2009-05
• Primary Completion: 2013-01
• Study Completion: 2014-01
• Status Verified: 2014-05
• Study First Submitted: 2014-05-21
• Study First Submitted QC: 2014-05-27
• Last Update Submitted: 2014-05-27
• Study First Posted: 2014-05-28
• Last Update Posted: 2014-05-28

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 120

Inclusion Criteria

• Youth 12 to 17 years old
• Parent or guardian willing to participate in assessments/treatment
• Demonstrate risk for mental health, substance abuse, or anger/adjustment problems on the Juvenile Services Department screening warranting intervention but not requiring residential treatment

Read More

Exclusion Criteria

• Youth under the age of 12 or over the age of 18
• Parent/guardian not willing to participate in assessments and treatment
• Youth not demonstrating mental health, substance abuse or anger/adjustment problems
• Youth requiring residential treatment
• Youth with severe mental illness or retardation

Read More

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: FACTORIAL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
CCP+MDFT	CCP+MDFT	Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT) is a multisystemic, flexible intervention system (Liddle, 2002). It is a strengths-based approach promoting protective factors and reducing risk factors for delinquency, substance use, and school problems. MDFT organizes interventions in key areas of the teen's life: self of the adolescent (includes HIV-STD risk behaviors), parenting, family environment, and school/vocational functioning.
CCP+SAU	CCP+SAU	Services as Usual (SAU) are determined on a case-by-case basis by the CCP Case Manager. SAU includes a variety of services offered by a number of community partners.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Delinquency	Intake through 9-month follow-up	Youth in CCP+MDFT will show less delinquency from intake to 9 months than youth in CCP+SAU.; National Youth Survey Self-Report Delinquency Scale (SRD)will be used to assess delinquency.
Recidivism	6 months prior to arrest that got youth in the CCP through 24 months after the baseline assessment	Juvenile justice arrest records recoding total arrests, total misdemeanor arrests, and total felony arrests for youth 6 months prior to baseline through 24 months after baseline.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Substance Use	Intake through the 9-month follow-up	Youth in CCP+MDFT will report less substance use from intake to 9 months than CCP+SAU. The Timeline Follow-Back Method, Personal Experiences Inventory and Urinalyses will be used to measure substance use.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine; 🇺🇸 Miami, Florida, United States