Using the Youth Assessment and Screening Instrument to Identify Traumatic History for Risk Classification and Case Management

• In Event: Criminogenic Needs, Strengths, and Treatment Factors as Considerations for Case Management with Juvenile Offender Populations

Abstract

Research has suggested that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) may be a predictor of criminal behavior for youth and adults. To identify and target past traumatic events for risk classification and case management, risk-needs assessments are beginning to include items that measure exposure to trauma. One such assessment instrument is the Youth Assessment and Screening Instrument (YASI), which has demonstrated predictive validity with youth in Alberta, Canada as well as in Virginia, Illinois, and New York in the United States. Using a sample of approximately 2,700 youth on referred to the juvenile delinquency department from a large Midwestern urban county, the current study will examine the relationship between trauma-related assessment measures and re-offending with a minimum one year follow-up. The study will review prevalence and prediction across demographic groups in the sample. Furthermore, the study will include YASI's measures of strengths as mitigating factors of outcome.

Authors

• Bridget Kelly, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

• Emily Salisbury, University of Nevada, Las Vegas