Begun Center researchers author study on juvenile diversion programs

Three researchers from the Begun Center for Violence Prevention Research and Education published a paper titled, “Examining the impact of a juvenile justice diversion program for youth with behavioral health concerns on early adulthood recidivism” in Child and Youth Services Review. Begun Center researchers contributing to the paper were: Jeff Kretschmar, managing director and research associate professor; Krystel Tossone, senior research associate and statistician; and Fredrick Butcher, research assistant professor.

About the paper

The majority of juvenile justice-involved youth report significant behavioral health and trauma concerns. The complexity of the needs of these youth have led many jurisdictions to develop diversion programming as an alternative to detention. While evidence exists that these programs can produce positive outcomes, particularly as they relate to juvenile recidivism, much less is known about their impact on adult offending. Their paper explores the impacts of these programs. Read “Examining the impact of a juvenile justice diversion program for youth with behavioral health concerns on early adulthood recidivism” on Science Direct.