The Role of Clinical Assessment in the Juvenile Court: Predictors of Juvenile Dispositions and Recidivism

Abstract Investigated the role of mental health assessment in the juvenile court decision-making process. Assessment reports and court records of 234. randomly selected male juveniles who were arrested and subsequently evaluated at a court-administered clinic yielded a total of 38 variables including demographic information, family composition and functioning, intellectual and social functioning, and treatment recommendations. Results revealed that the number of prior arrests and the decision to detain a juvenile prior to the adjudicatory hearing were the only two variables that predicted the disposition of the case, whereas a combination of number of prior arrests, a rating of academic achievement, and history of drug use predicted recidivism. In both cases, a large amount of variance was left unaccounted, suggesting that such traditional assessment reports have low validity and little influence on the juvenile court decision-making process. Innovative approaches to assessment are therefore needed.