Juvenile Court Officials’ Perceptions of
Family Dysfunction and Community
Characteristics in Juvenile Court
Decision-Making Processes
Nancy Rodriguez
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Arizona State University
Youth Violence Prevention Conference
University of Missouri-St. Louis
April 8, 2010
Overview
• Characteristics of Children in the U.S.
• Family Status, Disadvantage, and Juvenile
Court Outcomes
• Study Findings
• Implications for Research and Practice
Population of Children in U.S.
• 73.9 million Children in the United States
– 25% of the population
• Racial/Ethnic Diversity of Children
– Language Spoken at Home
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Children in Poverty
• Child Poverty Rate on the Rise
– In 2007, 18 percentage of children (13.3 million) were
living in poverty; up from 16.2 percent (11.6 million) in
2000.
– Rate higher for younger children
– Rate higher for Black and Hispanic children
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Family Structure in the U.S.
•
The Decline of the Two-parent Household
– The percentage of children under age 18 living with
two married parents fell from 77 percent in 1980 to
68 percent in 2007.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic
Supplement
Percentage of Children in Poverty, by
Family Structure, Race
and Hispanic Origin
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
All Races
Non-Hispanic
White
Black
Married-couple families
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Asian
Single-mother families
Hispanic
One Parent Families
Single father
11%
Single father
w/
cohabitating
partner
3%
Single mother
w/
cohabitating
partner
9%
Single mother
77%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
No Parent Families
Foster
parent(s)
8%
Other
4%
Nonrelative
9%
Grandparent
54%
Other relative
25%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Family Status, Disadvantage, and
Juvenile Justice
• How do family situational factors and living
in economically disadvantaged areas affect
juvenile court outcomes?
– Parents/guardians as sponsors of youth
• Capacity (emotional and financial) to assist court
with youth intervention
Family Status, Disadvantage, and
Juvenile Justice
– Family risk factors
• Low SES, antisocial behavior, broken homes, poor
parent-child relationship, family conflict, abuse and
neglect
– Limited resources in community
• Availability of services (community-based agencies,
treatment providers)
• Role models
Economic Disadvantage and
Juvenile Justice
• Court officials’ perceptions of a “bad
neighborhood” (Emerson, 1969)
• Focus on cross-jurisdictional differences
– Armstrong & Rodriguez, 2005; Sampson &
Laub, 1993; Rodriguez, 2007)
Economic Disadvantage and
Juvenile Justice
• Families who suffer from economic stain
are perceived as “unstable” or “inadequate”
(Bortner, 1982:181).
• Economic disadvantage and race
– Black lower-class youth (Bishop & Frazier,
1988; Leonard & Sontheimer, 1995; Miller,
1996)
Family Structure and
Juvenile Court Outcomes
• Impact of family status (e.g., family
structure, quality of care) (Bridges & Steen,
1998; DeJong & Jackson, 1998)
– Support and the cooperation exhibited by
parents are heavily guiding factors in juvenile
court decision-making processes (Bortner,
1982).
Family Structure and
Juvenile Court Outcomes
• Perceptions of support and cooperation
serve to disadvantage racial/ethnic youth
(Bishop & Frazier, 1996)
– Language and cultural barriers (Portillos, 2006)
• Single mother families play a more
significant role in court outcomes for Whites
than Black youth (DeJong & Jackson,
1998; Leiber & Mack, 2003)
– Expectations versus Reality
Areas of Inquiry
• Living in economically disadvantaged areas
– “micro-neighborhood context”
• Limited understanding of family dynamics
– Reliance on “single-parent homes” versus “twoparent homes” measures
• Role of family stability
– Family transitions
– Residential mobility
Study A
Concentrated Disadvantage and
Juvenile Court Outcomes
Objective:
• Examine relationship between concentrated
disadvantage and five juvenile court outcomes
(informal processing, detention, petition filed,
judicial dismissal, out-of-home placement)
Source:
Rodriguez , N. (in press). The cumulative effect of race and ethnicity in
juvenile court outcomes and why preadjudication detention matters. Journal
of Research in Crime & Delinquency.
Findings from HGLM of Juvenile
Court Outcomes
•Concentrated disadvantage index (+)
–Detention
–Correctional confinement
•Black and Latino/a minority youth (+)
–Concentrated disadvantage did not mediate the
race and ethnicity effects
Case File Narratives
–“He lives in a very poor, high-risk
neighborhood and most of his associates use
alcohol and other drugs. He understands that he
must work an active program recovery and avoid
places that would cause him to relapse.” (Latino
Youth)
–“The juvenile resides in the town homes complex
right off [location] and these complexes are in a
poor area, filled with drugs, and gangs, and
with the juvenile just roaming around there, he is
more apt to get into some type of trouble.” (Black
Youth)
Narrative from Case File
“(youth’s mother) reports she will be moving out of
her current neighborhood soon, and she hopes
this will improve the juvenile’s behavior. The
mother appears to work several hours leaving the
juvenile unattended with the opportunity to commit
more crime. I believe that placing the juvenile on
JIPS [intensive probation] would allow (youth)
to obtain more victims in the community since
he is unsupervised by the mother.” (Latino
Youth)
Case File Narratives
–“When I met with (youth) on 06-09-02, he stated that his
mother had not been able to visit him in detention,
due to not having transportation. Mother reportedly has
transportation problems and doesn’t always come to see
him when expected. This officer is concerned about the
mother’s inconsistency .” (Latino Youth)
–“Mother will not be at court. She does not have
transportation. There are seven other children in the
home, six which are female. The mother works outside
the home and has very little time or energy to deal with
her son’s behavior. At his scheduled disposition hearing,
commitment will be recommended.” (Black Youth)
Study B
Family Status and Juvenile Court
Outcomes
Objectives:
• Examine relationship between family status and
juvenile court outcomes (out-of-home placement)
• Identify the extent of family and residential
instability among juvenile justice involved youth
Family Structure of
Delinquent Youth (N= 2,300)
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Single
Parent
Two Parents Extended Foster Care
Family
Member
Friends
Case Files Narratives
“The mother seems to be struggling raising
several kids in the home. This officer has had
limited contact with the family. The home phone
has been disconnected. (youth) states that he
wants to go back home so that he can get a job
and help his mother pay the bills.” (Black Youth)
“The fact that the father is no longer residing in the
home has caused a lot of stress on the family. The
parents used to argue a lot and that hurt the
family but not as much as the father leaving.”
(Latino Youth)
Estimated Probabilities of
Out-of-home Placement
50%
43.1%
40%
30%
32.1%
Latinos
20%
19.4%
18.1%
Blacks
10%
12.8%
12.7%
12.2%
10.1%
6.4%
6.1%
0%
Single Parent
Two Parents
Extended Family
Foster Care
Friends
Narrative from Case File
“The actual parental figure in this case is the
grandmother. Grandmother has her hands full
caring for the younger of this daughters’ children,
especially a child with significant emotional health
problems. Grandmother has significant physical
health problems of her own … Of those
dispositional options available to the Court,
recommended will be secure treatment with the
Arizona Department of Juvenile Corrections for a
period of six months.” (Black Youth)
Narrative from Case File
“Youth is living with foster parents, where she
has been for the last two years. She has not lived
with her real family since 2000, because her mother
was arrested and the court found her mother to be
using drugs and an unfit environment for youth.
She is currently in a foster home that appears to
be somewhat dysfunctional.” (White Youth)
Number of Family Transitions
(N= 2,300)
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
0
1
2
3
4
5 or more
Number of Residential Moves
(N=2,300)
30%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10 or
more
Intersection: Family Transitions and
Residential Mobility
Zero Family Transitions and
Zero Residential Moves
One or More Family Transitions
and Zero Residential Moves
19.3%
6.4%
Zero Family Transitions and One
or More Residential Moves
One or More Family Transitions
and One or More Residential
Moves
21.5%
52.8%
Narrative from Case File
“The family shuffled from friend's house to
friend's house until they moved into their current
apartment at the beginning of August. Because of
the constant shuffling, the juvenile didn't
complete his work hours or the NCTI class.
Because the circumstances were out of the
juvenile's control, I would request he be granted an
extension.”
[Subsequent court record]: “VIOLATION: The
juvenile failed to notify the probation officer that the
family moved. This officer went to the apartment on
10-18-02 and it is unoccupied.” (Latino Youth)
Narrative from Case File
“After the juvenile’s parents were divorced, the
children lived with their father. Later, the children
moved back with their mother. The family has
been homeless in the past. They lived on the
streets and in various shelters. They have also
lived in motels. The juvenile was placed into state
custody in the past. It is noted that the juvenile
states she would prefer to live with another relative
or even go back to CPS custody as her and her
mother do not get along.” (Black Youth)
Family Instability and
Parental Incarceration
“The juvenile has been residing with his aunt
since before his mother’s murder by his father.
Isaac was placed with his aunt, because of the
domestic violence issues occurring at the time.
Currently, there is also a dependency petition in
progress. He was pushing the limits at his aunt’s
home, leaving and not coming home for days at a
time. He typically would go to a friend’s house and
not return.” (Latino Youth)
Family Instability and
Parental Incarceration
“Mom has been in and out of prison the majority of
the juvenile’s life. Juvenile has spent time in state
custody as a result. He has been placed in
numerous shelters. He did reside for a short time
in New Mexico with grandparents. Mother gave
guardianship of the juvenile to a boyfriend while she
was in prison, so the juvenile resided with his
mother’s boyfriend for some time. The juvenile
has since moved back into state custody.”
(American Indian Youth)
Estimated Probabilities of
Out-of-home Placement by Paternal
Incarceration - Latinos
80%
70%
70.5%
60%
59.9%
50%
40%
Maternal
Incarceration
43.1%
30%
31.7%
30.5%
30.4%
20%
22.3%
18.2%
10%
12.0%
11.4%
0%
Single Parent
Two Parents
Extended Family
Foster Care
Friends
Paternal
Incarceration
Estimated Probabilities of
Out-of-home Placement by Paternal
Incarceration - Blacks
90%
80%
83.6%
76.1%
70%
60%
61.9%
50%
49.8%
40%
30%
48.4%
48.3%
Maternal
Incarceration
38.0%
32.2%
20%
Paternal
Incarceration
22.5%
21.5%
10%
0%
Single Parent
Two Parents
Extended Family
Foster Care
Friends
Economic Strain Associated with
Parental Incarceration
– “The father who had a restraining order issued
against him for being violent with the family,
came back to the homes and is now in jail. The
mother and children, at the present time have
no money. Mom stated to this officer that she
may have to sell her car to provide money to
pay her electricity bill.” (White Youth)
– “Father provides no support to the family,
and recently was released from prison.” (Latino
Youth)
Parental Incarceration and
Potential for Rehabilitation
“Her prognosis is guarded due to the severity
of family dysfunction and the very limited
availability of services.” (Black Youth)
Study C.
The “Dysfunctional Family”
Objectives:
•Identify context of family dysfunction among
delinquent youth
•Examine relationship between dysfunction and
juvenile court outcomes (out-of-home placement)
Source:
Rodriguez, N., Smith, H. & Zatz, M.S. (2009). “Youth is enmeshed in a highly
dysfunctional family system”: Exploring the relationship among dysfunctional families,
parental incarceration, and juvenile court decision making. Criminology,47(1),177-208.
The “Dysfunctional Family”
• Family dysfunction as a risk factor in
juvenile court processes and outcomes
(Emerson, 1969)
– Financial strain, instability within the family, poor
parenting skills, abuse, or criminal involvement
by family members
The “Dysfunctional Family”
• Family dysfunction scales:
– FAD-GF (McMaster Family Assessment
Device General Functioning Subscale)
(Epstein, Baldwin, and Bishop, 1983)
– Family Functioning Scale (FES) (Moos and
Moos, 2002)
• Variation in definition
Interview Excerpts
– “What I see is you have boys and girls from very
dysfunctional families. Eighty-five percent of
them are no-parent families or one-parent
families.” (Probation Officer)
– “The families are just so dysfunctional. The
parents are using themselves. Low class, no
money. Twenty kids living in the home. On
welfare. Just very dysfunctional.” (Detention
Officer)
Estimated Probabilities of
Out of Home Placement by
Dysfunction - Latinos
40%
36.2%
30%
27.2%
20%
26.1%
Dysfunction
22.4%
18.1%
15.0%
10%
14.3%
No
Dysfunction
10.1%
6.4%
6.1%
0%
Single Parent
Two Parents
Extended Family
Foster Care
Friends
Estimated Probabilities of
Out of Home Placement by
Dysfunction - Blacks
60%
54.8%
50%
44.4% 43.1%
40%
38.2%
30%
Dysfunction
32.1%
27.4%
26.3%
20%
No
Dysfunction
19.4%
10%
12.8%
12.2%
0%
Single Parent
Two Parents
Extended Family
Foster Care
Friends
Case File Narratives
– “Youth comes from a very dysfunctional home.
There are several children in the family.
Several of these children are living in CPS
shelters.” (White Youth).
– “Youth comes from a dysfunctional family. Her
mother has been a drug user, her father is
currently deported to Mexico (and there are
allegations that he has sexually molested his
daughters).” (Latina Youth)
Narrative from Case File
“It certainly does appear that the home situation,
especially as it relates to the extended family, is
quite unstable and dysfunctional and has
contributed to youth’s serious emotional
disturbance. At this time, placement of the
juvenile at Black Canyon would protect this
juvenile, as well as consequence for her
actions.” (Latina Youth).
Implications for Theory and Practice
•Disadvantage as an Important External
Attribute
•Community Awareness
–Community-based strategies (e.g., Weed and
Seed)
Implications for Theory and Practice
•Family Structure and Family Processes
–Complex Family Systems and Treatment by
the Juvenile Justice System
–Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare Systems
(e.g., wraparound services)
–Blueprint Programs (e.g., FFT, MST)
Implications for Theory and Practice
•Residential Instability
–Children's Well-being
•School
•Health
–Circulation of Information
–Challenges Associated with Monitoring and
Supervision of Youth
Implications for Theory and Practice
•Reentry Programs
–Maintaining Family Ties
–Team Approach
•Community and Family Involvement
•Strong Family Support System
Thank You
Nancy Rodriguez, Ph.D.
nancy.rodriguez@asu.edu