Lessons Learned: Process and Outcome Evaluation of Functional Family Therapy

• In Event: The Role of Family in Juvenile Court Processes, Institutional Misconduct, and Aftercare

Abstract

Functional Family Therapy (FFT) is a model, blueprint intervention that is currently provided in 45 states. It is an intervention for youth and their families, designed to prevent aggressive behavior, delinquency and recidivism among juveniles. These goals are addressed via improving communication skills and strengthening relationships among all family members. FFT is a short-term family intervention, usually completed within 3 months. It encompasses three distinctive phases: motivation and engagement, behavioral change and generalization. In this paper, the author describes the main findings of the process and the outcome evaluation of Functional Family Therapy implemented in Middlesex County, NJ. The data were collected between 2006 and 2011, and include: interviews with the therapists, interviews with juveniles and their parents, the Strengths and Needs Assessment data, and New Jersey Family Court recidivism data on reconvictions. The process evaluation findings address the barriers encountered during implementation of FFT as well as research-related issues in designing the study and in data collection. The outcome evaluation results include satisfaction ratings of FFT, expressed by youth and their parents after participating in the intervention, and the probability of reconviction, assessed by comparison with a control group in a quasi-experimental study.

Author

• Katarzyna Celinska, John Jay College of Criminal Justice