Youth in Adult and Juvenile Correctional Facilities: Comparison of Services and Behavioral Management

Given contemporary efforts to prevent adolescents from experiencing the negative consequences of incarceration, it is critical to assess the impact of juvenile transfer. Relative to a potential deterrent effect on the recidivism of transferred juveniles, empirical evidence regarding their institutional experience is lacking. Drawing on record data from those admitted to adult and juvenile systems in a Midwestern state from 2011 to 2014, this study compared the correctional experience of teenage males housed in an adult prison with young adults and teenagers housed in juvenile residential facilities. After controlling for individual profiles using the propensity score analysis, youth in adult facilities had similar or more access to institutional programs but also exhibited relatively higher involvement in misconduct based on official reports. The implications for correctional policies and practices for transferred and incarcerated youth are discussed.

Beyond Recidivism: Investigating Comparative Educational and Employment Outcomes for Adolescents in the Juvenile and Criminal Justice Systems

While the relationship between juvenile transfer and recidivism has received much scholarly attention, the effect of transfer on other outcomes has largely been ignored. This study examined the effect of transfer on 7-year educational and employment outcomes, with time in the community and perceived stigma as hypothesized mediators. Pathways to Desistance data were analyzed with propensity score matching and mediation analysis. Transfer to criminal court strongly predicts lower employment outcomes, fully mediated by diminished time in the community. Transfer also marginally predicts higher educational outcomes. Education results call for further research, and employment results suggest that transfer policies should be revisited.