Background

Substance use and victimization are known to be related to juvenile recidivism. Self-harm, a factor that commonly accompanies substance use and victimization, is not known to be related to said recidivism but may be so in a welfare-oriented juvenile justice system as found in Japan.

Objective

We examine the extent to which maladaptive coping, comprising substance use and self-harm, increases the rate of persistence in correctional institutions in light of other well-replicated factors of youth recidivism. The study, too, investigates the role of maladaptive coping in explaining the impact of victimization on correctional recidivism.

Methods

We draw from a sample of 348 adolescents and emerging adults, between ages 12–19 years, who were initially detained at a Juvenile Classification Home and followed-up for an average of 3.35 years.

Results

Findings indicate that maladaptive coping is significantly related to persistence in the system, although history of probationary supervision and gang membership also were significant explanatory factors. In addition, the direct effect of victimization was larger than the indirect effect of victimization through maladaptive coping.

Conclusions

Unlike previous studies, self-harm is significantly related to recidivism. This suggests that recidivism reflects a need for help more so than for punishment. The wider implications are that juvenile justice systems characterized as punitive seem outdated in managing detained young people as they lack adequate prevention supports.

中文翻译：

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日本青少年和新兴成年人的适应不良、受害和再犯

背景

已知物质使用和受害与青少年累犯有关。自残是一种通常伴随物质使用和受害的因素，目前尚不清楚与上述累犯有关，但在日本的以福利为导向的少年司法系统中可能如此。

客观的

我们研究了适应不良的应对（包括物质使用和自残）在多大程度上增加了惩教机构中青少年再犯的其他重复性因素。该研究也调查了适应不良应对在解释受害对矫正累犯的影响方面的作用。

方法

我们从 348 名 12-19 岁的青少年和新兴成年人中抽取样本，他们最初被拘留在青少年分类之家，平均随访 3.35 年。

结果

研究结果表明，适应不良的应对与系统中的持久性显着相关，尽管缓刑监督和帮派成员的历史也是重要的解释因素。此外，受害的直接影响大于适应不良应对受害的间接影响。

结论

与以往的研究不同，自残与再犯有显着关系。这表明累犯更多地反映了对帮助的需求，而不是对惩罚的需求。更广泛的影响是，被定性为惩罚性的少年司法系统在管理被拘留的年轻人方面似乎已经过时，因为他们缺乏足够的预防支持。