Hospitalized Juvenile Offender - A Behavioral/Educational Approach

• NCJ Number: 74782
• Author(s): D J Burnett; S K Curtis
• Date Published: 1979
• Length: 7 pages
• Sale Source: Eric Document Reproduction Service
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Paper presented at Association for Behavior Analysis International Organization, Dearborn, Michigan, June 18, 1979.

Annotation

This paper describes a private hospitalization treatment program in California which combines a behavioral and educational approach in treating the juvenile offender, a case study illustrates how this treatment model interacts with the juvenile justice system.

Abstract

The program operates in a structured token economy framework involving open and closed units. The program's emphasis is on teaching juveniles that their behaviors have consequences which must be accepted and anticipated. Predelinquent behaviors are targeted and monitored throughout treatment. Each adolescent entering the program undergoes an evaluation which results in the development of individualized educational plan with specific objectives. Quantitative reports are regularly submitted to the courts on participants' progress. A case study of a 17-year old boy with a history of theft, drug sales, breaking and entering, and status offenses is described in detail. Three references are included.