Language
English (en)
Date of Award
5-8-2024
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Chair and Committee
Brett Drake
Abstract
Youth who touch both the child welfare system (CWS) and juvenile justice system (JJS), termed dual-system youth, represent a particularly high needs population at risk of poor outcomes into adulthood. Among CWS involved children, youth aging out of foster care are particularly high risk of dual-system status. To help these teenagers in foster care prepare for adulthood, states offer independent living services (ILS). Despite the high risk of JJS involvement of these youth, we know very little of the association between ILS receipt and dual-system involvement. This dissertation has two aims, the first focusing on ILS and delinquency onset during foster care, and the second on their association relating to outcomes after foster care. Aim 1 asks: Does ILS receipt change as teenage youth move between placements and become involved with the JJS? Aim 2 asks: How do JJS involvement and ILS predict incarceration in young adulthood? Multiple datasets are merged from the National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect (NDACAN) repositories. Aim 1 fits a multistate model, predicting transitions between different states representing combinations of ILS receipt and delinquency status. Aim 2 fits Bayesian generalized linear mixed models predicting the occurrence of incarceration in two time periods:17-19 years of age and 19-21 years of age. Aim 1 finds that ILS receipt and delinquency onset are significantly associated with placement type and demographics (gender, race/ethnicity, rurality), but the degrees of association depends on the particular combinations of ILS receipt and delinquency status. Aim 2 finds that early receipt of ILS is associated with decreased risk of incarceration between the ages of 17-19, with some evidence that ILS receipt after age 17 is associated with decreased risk of incarceration between 19-21. Implications for policy, practice, and future research are discussed.
Recommended Citation
Jones, Dylan Monahan, "Dual-System Youth and Emancipating from Foster Care: Examining the Relations Between Delinquency, Independent Living Services, and Criminal Justice Involvement" (2024). Brown School Theses and Dissertations. 32.
https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/brown_etds/32