Juvenile Correctional Facilities

The Impact of Juvenile Inmates’ Perceptions and Facility Characteristics on Victimization in Juvenile Correctional Facilities is written by Aaron Kupchik and R. Bradley Snyder. The significance of the problem the article focuses on is evidence of a third theoretic model in addition to the deprivation and importation theoretic models. The third model combines facility and individual variables that concentrate on the perception of the youth toward the facility’s rules and standards. The deprivation model assumes that violent behavior occurs because the juvenile prisoner is responding to the prison environment, which can be an extreme and abnormal envirornment. Overcrowding, staff to inmate ratios, rule enforcement by staff, and the
Most of the author’s references are Prison Journals or Social Work journals. The study data and analysis contributes to the majority of the article. There are also numerous tables including the Summary Statistics for Variables in Multilevel Models, Mutlilevel Models of Discrete Victimization, and Regression Victimization on Facility-level at Individual-level Variables. The independent and dependent variables are noted and discussed on page 272. (Kupchik & Snyder, 2009, pg. 269-275). The tone of the article is professional and thorough. From the provided analysis in the article, I am able to understand where the third theoretic model could be a possibility. The authors point out that most previous studies performed and most data gathered is solely from the perspective of the facility management, facility staff and government agencies. By considering the youth’s perceptions, the authors perform their analysis and outcomes in 2005. The participation is voluntary and self selected, therefore it is not randomly sampled. The data was then collected through
279). Juvenile inmates bring with them relationships and behaviors that may lead to violence. Certainly, misbehavior and violence can stem from deprivation as well. When the inmates perceive the staff and facilities as helpful and they understand the rules, they are less violent (Kupchik & Snyder, 2009, pg. 279). Just as those who follow the Word of God know what is expected of them. “The Lord tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence” (ESV, Psalm 11:5). Knowing what is expected and acceptable will help to tame tempers and outbursts. I think that the article is unique. The authors point out the highlights of the focus of the importation model on inmates, not facilities. It addresses the focus of the deprivation model by measuring the facilities, no the inmates. Other studies have considered violence in the adult facilities. This study focuses on the inmate’s perception of the facility and staff in relation to violence in the