NCJ Number
141864
Date Published
Unknown
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This manual explains and presents a system designed to enhance professionals' interactions with youth and their families, to conduct assessments, and to make decisions regarding the treatment needs of juvenile delinquents and juvenile status offenders.
Abstract
The Youth Assessment and Treatment System uses a social work approach and structures the process from intake through assessment, treatment, and closure. It can be implemented in State, regional, county, or local jurisdictions. It rests on the principles of community protection, accountability, the need to develop competency among juvenile offenders, individualization, and balanced attention to the needs of all concerned. The assessment uses 13 open ended questions relating to the youth, the parent, and the family. The answers to each question indicate the positive and negative influences operating in areas such as the youth's behavior, the youth's relationships with others, the youth's cognitive capacity, the parent's attitudes and parenting practices, and family communications. The system was successfully field tested in one Wisconsin county and is now being offered throughout the country.