Desistance-Focused Treatment and Asset Based Programming for Juvenile Offender Reintegration: A Review of Research Evidence
Menon, S.E., & Cheung, M. (2018). Desistance-focused treatment and asset-based programming for juvenile offender reintegration: A review of research evidence. Child & Adolescent Social Work Journal, 35, 459-476. (Authorship: 70-30).
This research began in early 2017 for my Independent study where I was motivated to "get my answers" to the big question that has been on my mind for years. What does it really take for juveniles to reintegrate successfully? I had chosen to work with an esteemed Professor in Social Work, Dr Monit Cheung, at the Graduate College of Social Work, University of Houston. It was a project that stretched beyond the semester. It took about one year of hard work, crafting a research that was of publishable quality and finetuning it to add knowledge to the literature. This research was firstly presented at the GCSW research conference in Fall 2017 as a poster presentation, followed by an oral presentation at the Joint World Conference on Social Work, Education and Social Development 2018, in Dublin, Ireland this July 2018. The journal was accepted for publication in April 2018.
Abstract
Research indicates that juvenile delinquency, if not intervened earlier, could potentially lead to the youth’s future involvement with the criminal justice system as an adult. This study identifies research evidence to support the building of a desistance focused pathway for juvenile offenders positively reentering society. It examines the “desistance” components of treatment programs and assets that help ex-offending adolescents achieve success in reintegrating back to the community. A review of research evidence summarized the empirical data from twelve studies published between 2007 and 2017. Diverse service components were found in addressing the treatment needs of young offenders, indicating that multiple services are needed to lower their recidivism rate. These diverse components were benchmarked with the 40-asset model developed by the Search Institute, providing additional support that these service components are resilience-based and desistance-focused. Both internal and external assets were emphasized in these reviewed studies. Highlighted are the holistic nature of asset-based programs and service components for helping juveniles gain internal awareness and access external resources. A balanced treatment model is recommended with an emphasis on building assets for designing a holistic plan of reintegration to help juveniles reenter society and stay crime-free.
Keywords Protective factors · Reentry programs · Juvenile delinquency · Recidivism · 40 Developmental assets · Holistic reintegration
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