Do delinquent girls need a different treatment approach? Evidence from a study on mental health problems in a forensic outpatient clinic

• In Event: Mental health problems in forensic settings

Abstract

Studies conducted within residential settings such as juvenile justice centers suggest that girls have more mental health problems than boys, especially regarding comorbidity of psychiatric disorders. However, it might be that the process of incarceration can be stressful and that this might also increase psychiatric morbidity. In the Netherlands a growing population of juvenile delinquents is treated in an outpatient setting, and juvenile justice centers are closing. Implications might be that a more severe population of youngster, who were locked up before, is now treated within an outpatient setting, suggesting more youngsters (especially girls) with mental health problems within these settings. However, it might also be that mental health problems are less severe due to the fact that these youngsters experience less stress than those who are locked up in an institution. Within a sample of 730 adolescents and young adults, treated in an outpatient setting, we collected data from their treatment files on a large number of risk factors, including psychiatric disorders. We studied differences and similarities in mental health between boys and girls and related their mental health problems to treatment information. We also compared their mental health problems to results found in Dutch studies, conducted within juvenile justice institutions.

Authors

• Jan Hendriks, VU University Amsterdam

• Anne-Marie Slotboom, VU University

• Machteld Hoeve, University of Amsterdam