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With the rise in out-of-wedlock childbearing and divorce in the last quarter of the 20th century, an increasing proportion of children have been exposed not only to life with a single mother but to a variety of new family forms. In this paper we examine the determinants of men's early parental roles, distinguishing factors that affect being a father versus childless, being a coresident vs. a noncoresident father, as well as those predicting being a stepfather. The data come from the Child-Mother and Young Adult Samples of the NLSY79, which provide information on the children of the NLSY79 from birth until they enter young adulthood. The results support previous research showing the economic and educational disadvantage of men not living with their biological children and, to a lesser degree, men who become stepfathers. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Family Functional Therapy (FFT) is an evidenced based therapeutic and prevention intervention targeting youth to improve their behavior and reduce delinquency risk by changing intra-family members' dynamics. In this paper, we present preliminary results of the evaluation of the Children at Risk Resources and Interventions - Youth Intensive Intervention Program (CARRI-YIIP). We employ a matching-group design with CARRI-YIIP clients who participate in the FFT intervention as an experimental group and the Youth Case Management (YCM) clients who receive a variety of traditional therapeutic interventions as a comparison group. The outcome results include testing pre- and post- intervention profiles of the CARRI-YIIP participants and in comparison to the YCM clients. The profiles are derived from the Strengths and Needs Assessment that synthesizes information including: demographic characteristics, life domain functioning, child and caregivers' strengths and needs, child behavioral/emotional needs and risk behaviors, institutional placement, and individualized assessment modules. The outcome data includes also information on any new delinquency or criminal complain charges brought against the youth one year after termination from the CARRI-YIIP program. Finally, the evaluation study assesses participant satisfaction with the program. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The researches made in psychotherapy field have proved the importance of child's relationship with his group affiliation and with his family, as a prereqiusite for balanced development of child's personality and his social optimal integration. Based on this researches, we have found that the best predictor for a harmonic child's development is given by the relationship sited between child and his family members and the effective communication within family. For the investigation we aimed to specifically evaluate how the child relates to other family members using structured psychological interview and observation, we have continued the investigation of the personality using clinical evaluation instruments and for the personality's restructuring we used individual and family psychotherapy. Our desire was not only to determine and to investigate the causes of the disorder but also to implement psychological activities in order to improve child behaviour. We have considered that the relationship that they have and effective communication can lead to personality rebalancing and to a good integration both in the family and in the psycho-social area (school). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2007, The State of Connecticut completely reorganized the treatment and assistance given to status offenders. Recognizing the reality that status offenders should be diverted from formal justice responses and that these youth were often struggling with family and school issues; the state treated every status offense case as a Family With Service Needs (FWSN). These youth would now be directed to community resourced for assistance and treatment, and those with specific needs would be referred to Family Support Centers for individualized, group and family therapy. This project officially commenced in October 2007, with the selection and initiation of four sites as part of Phase I of the project: Connecticut FSCs and include: Waterbury (CT Junior Republic), Hartford (Wheeler Clinic), Bridgeport (CT Renaissance) and New Haven (St. Francis). To ensure the highest quality programs and services the Connecticut Judicial Branch, Court Support Services Division (CSSD), in conjunction with The Justice Research Center has conducted the Process and Outcome Evaluation of the 2007-08 Connecticut Family with Service Needs Project. The program services will be presented along with the results of the process evaluation. Suggestions for future research and developments of this initiative will also be explored. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Functional Family Therapy (FFT) is a therapeutic intervention that aims to prevent and reduce delinquency by changing intra-family members' dynamics. Preliminary results of an FFT evaluation in New Jersey are presented. The research employs a matched comparison group design to compare FFT participants (N=40) in the Children at Risk Resources and Interventions - Youth Intensive Intervention Program (CARRI-YIIP), with a comparison group (N=40) that received traditional group and individual therapeutic interventions via Youth Case Management (YCM). Most FFT and comparison youth were court-ordered to participate and/or on probation. The relative success of the two interventions is measured by a Strengths and Needs Assessment which includes information on child's life domain functioning, children's and caregivers' strengths, and children's behavioral and emotional needs and risks. Recidivism of the experimental group is indicated by new delinquency or adult criminal charges. Finally, the results of a qualitative assessment of FFT intervention and program satisfaction survey among participants and their families are described ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This presentation describes the rationale for and preliminary results of a multi-site controlled trial that is part of the NIDA CJDATS collaborative. The study investigates the effects of an innovative cross-systems intervention for drug-abusing juvenile offenders that begins when youth entire detention and continues after release in the community. The novel intervention is based on an empirically supported treatment, Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT; Liddle, 2002), a best practice for adolescent drug abuse and delinquency. The overarching aim of the study is to create an intervention that would bridge juvenile justice and drug treatment services and alter these systems to work more collaboratively for the benefit of young substance-abusing offenders. The study also investigates the potential of a state-of-the-art HIV/STD risk-reduction intervention as part of the family-based treatment. The MDFT cross-systems approach is being compared with enhanced services as usual in two sites in Florida. The presentation describes the family-based cross-systems approach, implementation challenges, and collaboration with juvenile justice stakeholders. We also present preliminary data on approximately 80 participants in terms of their comparative satisfaction with services, treatment engagement, and retention. Three-month outcomes are presented on a range of outcomes demonstrating the promise of this integrative model. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]