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The Signs of Safety (SoS) approach has been designed as a tool for professionals to support families and children referred to child protection services, aiming to prevent child maltreatment in early stages. The current study was conducted to give in-depth information on how the SoS-approach is applied to foster parental empowerment and build a cooperative partnership, and to examine the effectiveness of SoS in terms of reducing the risk of child maltreatment and increasing parental empowerment. Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews with seven SoS-workers. Quantitative questionnaire data from parents and social workers of 20 families receiving SoS and 20 families receiving care as usual were compared. Families were matched using propensity score matching. The interviews demonstrated that a cooperative partnership between social workers and parents was considered to be a prerequisite to establishing parental empowerment, and that the emphasis on parental empowerment contributed positively to a cooperative partnership between SoS-workers and parents. Quantitative results suggested that three months after a care plan had been made, SoS did not outperform regular care in reducing the risk of child maltreatment and increasing parental empowerment. Overall, parental empowerment was, at trend level, associated with a reduction in the risk of child maltreatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives New Perspectives (NP) aims to prevent that youth at onset of a criminal career will develop a more persistent criminal behavior pattern. The study aim was to examine whether NP was effective relative to care as usual in preventing and reducing (persistent) delinquency. Moreover, we examined improvements in secondary outcomes (e.g., peer and parent relationships and cognitive distortions) and other outcomes (e.g., substance use and self-esteem). Methods At-risk youth ( N = 101) aged 12 to 19 years were randomly assigned to the intervention group (NP, n = 47) or control group (‘care as usual’, n = 54). The effects of the NP intensive phase (3 months after program start) and aftercare phase (6 months after program start) were analyzed. Results NP and care as usual did not differ on any of the outcome measures at both post-test occasions. The effects of NP were the same for boys and girls, different age groups, and ethnic groups. Conclusions The overall null-effects are discussed, including implications for further research, policy, and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

So far, most meta-analyses and reviews on juvenile crime risk factors focused on risk factors for traditional crimes. It is unknown, though, whether these risk factors are also relevant for the explanation of cybercrime perpetration. This meta-analytic review aimed to identify risk factors for cyberstalking, hacking, and sexting perpetrated by juveniles. A literature search yielded 48 articles (24 for cyberstalking, 15 for sexting, and 10 for hacking) that produced 903 effect sizes (306 for cyberstalking, 61 for sexting, and 536 for hacking). The results showed similarities, but also differences in risk factors for the three types of cybercrime. Overall, peer factors were found to be important for all three types (deviant peers for cyberstalking and hacking and peer pressure for sexting). Besides, for cyberstalking, previous online and offline perpetration and victimization were significant risk factors. Other small but significant effects for multiple cybercrime types were found for dark personality traits (for cyberstalking and sexting) and high computer preoccupation (for cyberstalking and hacking). Implications for (preventive) intervention are discussed, as well as the need for future research. • First meta-analysis on risk factors for juvenile cyberstalking, sexting and hacking. • Similarities and differences were found in risk factors for the 3 cybercrimes. • Peer factors were important risk factors for all 3 cybercrimes. • Prior perpetration and victimization were important risk factors for cyberstalking. • Dark personality traits and high computer preoccupation were risk factors for multiple cybercrimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple studies have shown that Multisystemic Therapy (MST) is, at group level, an effective treatment for adolescents showing serious externalizing problem behavior. The current study expands previous research on MST by, first, examining whether subgroups of participants who respond differently to treatment could be identified. Second, we investigated if the different trajectories of change during MST could be predicted by individual (hostile attributions) and contextual (parental sense of parenting competence and deviant and prosocial peer involvement) pre-treatment factors. Participants were 147 adolescents (mean age = 15.91 years, 104 (71%) boys) and their parents who received MST. Pre-treatment assessment of the predictors and 5 monthly assessments of externalizing behavior during treatment took place using both adolescent and parents' self-reports. Six distinct subgroups, showing different trajectories of change in externalizing problem behavior during MST, were identified. Two of the 6 trajectories of change showed a poor treatment response, as one class did not change in externalizing problem behavior and the other class even increased. The remaining 4 trajectories displayed a positive effect of MST, by showing a decrease in externalizing behavior. Most of these trajectories could be predicted by parental sense of parenting competence. Additionally, lower involvement with prosocial peers was a predictor of the group that appeared to be resistant to MST. Adolescents do respond differently to MST, which indicates the importance of personalizing treatment. Protective factors, such as parental sense of parenting competence and prosocial peers, seem to require additional attention in the first phase of MST. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Interventions that aim to increase well-being among detained juveniles, in addition to interventions focusing on behavioral change, are urgently needed and should be increasingly implemented. A promising and popular intervention is the prison-based dog training program. In such a program, detainees train shelter dogs to prepare them for adoption. In literature about these interventions, it is often assumed that the perceived bond with the dog plays an important role in improving well-being among detainees. For example, it is assumed to decrease stress and increase self-esteem. However, the human–animal bond within a prison-based dog training program and its effects are seldom investigated. In this study, we investigated to what extent the human–animal bond predicts stress and self-esteem among detained juveniles, participating in a prison-based dog training program in the Netherlands (Dutch Cell Dogs). Questionnaires and interviews at several timepoints were used to measure the quality of the human–animal bond, and the perceived reciprocity, stress, and self-esteem. The results of this study show that the human–animal bond did not predict lower stress or higher self-esteem, contrary to our expectations. More research on prison-based dog training programs is needed to investigate how these programs work, and the specific role of the human–animal bond within these programs. This study examined to what extent the human–animal bond (HAB) had a positive impact on stress and self-esteem among detained juveniles participating in the prison-based dog training program Dutch Cell Dogs (DCD). Participants were 75 detained juveniles (mean age = 19.5, 86.7% male). Self-reported stress and self-esteem were assessed before the start of DCD (T1), after four weeks (halfway training/T2) and after eight weeks (end training/T3). Structured interviews and questionnaire items were used to measure the HAB quality and perceived reciprocity in the HAB at T2 and T3. Data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling. In the variable-centered approach analyses, only the cross-sectional positive association between HAB quality and self-esteem at T2 was significant in the cross-lagged panel models. None of the cross-lagged paths between the HAB and stress or self-esteem were significant. In the person-centered approach analyses, growth mixture modeling identified two patterns of self-esteem ("high stable" and "high decreasing"); however, these patterns were not predicted by HAB. Thus, in contrast to our hypotheses, the HAB did not predict improvements in detained juveniles' stress and self-esteem. These findings underline the need for more research into the often-presumed role of HAB within prison-based dog training programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aims of the present study were, first, to establish the effect of brief, in-home intensive family preservation programs on prevention of out-of-home placement, family functioning, child behavior problems and social support and, second, to study moderators of these effects. The results of this meta-analytic study, consisting of 20 studies (31,369 participants), show that intensive family preservation programs had a medium and positive effect on family functioning (d =.486), but were generally not effective in preventing out-of-home placement. Intensive family preservation programs were effective in preventing placement for multi-problem families, but not for families experiencing abuse and neglect. Moreover, the effect on out-of-home placement proved to be moderated by client characteristics (sex and age of the child, parent age, number of children in the family, single-parenthood, non-white ethnicity), program characteristics (caseload), study characteristics (study design and study quality), and publication characteristics (publication type, publication year and journal impact factor). The discussion addresses implications for evaluation and practice. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

To promote the return of juveniles to a home-like environment (e.g. living with (foster)parents) after secure residential treatment (SRT), it is important to know which factors are related to this outcome. The current study examined which characteristics of the juvenile, family, and SRT, including family centeredness and use of systemic interventions, are related to the living situation after discharge. For 259 juveniles (mean age 15.82 years, 127 girls) in SRT and their parents, questionnaires were administered at admission, discharge, and 6-months follow-up. Furthermore, information about the living situation before and after SRT was gathered. Higher likelihood of living in a home-like setting after SRT correlated with more furlough moments with parents, receiving a systemic intervention, and a shorter duration of the SRT. Systemic interventions during SRT and spending furlough moments with parents may have a positive impact on returning to a home-like situation after SRT for juveniles., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

In this study we examined whether aspects of parental monitoring of adolescents' online behavior (rules regarding time spent on the internet, rules regarding content of internet use, frequency of communication, and quality of communication about internet use) are related to different kinds of online delinquent behaviors (sexting, spreading viruses, DDoS attacking, hacking, and online threatening) and whether the level of adolescents' problematic (addictive) internet use mediates these relations. In regular Dutch high schools 1,009 adolescents filled out an online questionnaire (with adjusted versions of the ISPP, PIUQ, and the Dutch Youth Crime Monitor). Descriptive statistics showed that, in general, parents do not seem to monitor adolescents' online behavior to a great extent. Furthermore, results of logistic regression analyses and mediation tests showed that fewer rules about online time, more rules about online content, and a good quality of parent-adolescent communication about online behavior are all associated with lower problematic internet use, which in turn is associated with lower odds of several online delinquent behaviors (mediation). Moreover, parental handling of rules about online content is also directly associated with lower odds of spreading viruses, hacking, and online threat., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Although temper tantrums are considered a normal part of emotional development in toddlerhood, for some they foreshadow more serious behavioral and emotional problems. Parental discipline techniques may play a role in explaining why this behavior worsens for some children whereas for others it fades away. With this three-wave longitudinal study, we examined bidirectional associations between specific discipline techniques - ignoring, power assertion, and consistency - and intra-individual changes in the severity of tantrum behavior. We observed tantrum behavior in a standardized clean-up task, overcoming the limitation of most earlier work that relied on parent-report for associated changes in parenting and child behavior over time. For 94 children (53 boys; M age = 30 months, range 20-43 months), mothers filled out the Parenting Dimensions Inventory, and temper tantrum severity (i.e., duration and aggressiveness) was coded three times across one year. Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Models suggested parent-effects rather than child-effects: more maternal power assertion and less consistency predicted increases in tantrum severity over time (ignoring did not), but temper tantrum severity did not predict changes in parenting over time. Results indicate that reducing power assertion and increasing consistency may be especially helpful in reducing temper tantrums in children. Findings add to previous findings indicating that mothers' parenting may be driven less by objective child behavior than by her own perceptions of her child's behavior., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Purpose: Home visitation program effects are generally small, which may be caused by flexible intervention content leading to inconsistent outcomes. In this study we therefore examined whether the effectiveness of a Dutch home visitation program (i.e., Supportive Parenting) can be improved by adding structured intervention components targeting key risk factors for child maltreatment: parental sense of competence, perceived stress, parental anger, and PTSD symptoms., Method: Participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group ( n  = 74) that received four additional intervention components in two home visits, or a control group ( n  = 60) that received regular Supportive Parenting. Outcomes were assessed before (T1) and after (T2) the first, and before (T3) and after (T4) the second home visit. Effects were examined using ANCOVA for primary outcomes: parental sense of competence, perceived stress, parental anger, and PTSD symptoms, and secondary outcomes: risk of child maltreatment, parental warmth, and negative parenting. Moderation effects were examined for T1 scores, child temperament and life events., Results: Mothers who received the intervention components showed less stress compared to the control group at T3 and T4. There were no differences between groups on other outcomes and no moderation effects, although parental sense of competence reduced and anger increased within the experimental group specifically., Conclusion: The structured components may enhance the effectiveness of Supportive Parenting to reduce parenting stress. Future research into how other outcomes can be improved is needed., Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10896-023-00509-7., Competing Interests: Conflict of InterestNone., (© The Author(s) 2023.)

Prenatal expectations about what children will be like after birth may provide a context for how parents perceive their infant's actual temperament. We examined how these expectations and perceptions are associated and together predict early parenting behavior, with parenting behavior in turn predicting changes in temperament. Reports of 125 families ( N = 122 fathers; N = 123 mothers; sample 1) about their expectations of their unborn child's temperament (negative affectivity, surgency, regulation, T1), their infant's temperament at 4 and 12 months post-partum (T2 and T3), and their hostile, responsive, warm, and overprotective parenting (T2) were included. We also included data from an independent sample of 168 mothers (sample 2), with the same measures, except that mothers reported on Big Five personality traits at T1. Results indicated that in both samples, parents' expectations were positively associated with perceptions of infant temperament. Prenatal expectations and newborn temperament independently predicted parenting behavior, and maternal and paternal parenting in turn predicted infant temperament at T3, controlling for infant temperament at T2. Although overall findings indicated associations between (expectations of) a more difficult temperament and more negative/less positive parenting, significant combinations of specific traits and parenting behaviors were sample-specific-indicating that more research is necessary to draw a conclusion about specific links. Both maternal and paternal expectations about their unborn child's temperament appear to carry over into the postpartum reality and provide a context for shaping early interactions between caregivers and their children, which may further shape the developing temperament of the child., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Van den Akker, Majdandzic, de Vente, Asscher and Bögels.)

The aim of this study was to test whether the associations between adolescent-parent attachment and externalizing problem behavior of adolescents were mediated by adolescent cognitive distortions, self-esteem, parental monitoring and association with deviant peers. A total of 102 adolescents (71 % male; aged 12-19 years) at risk for developing delinquent behaviors reported on attachment, parental monitoring, aggressive and delinquent behavior and peers. Mediation effects were tested by using structural equation modeling. Different pathways were found depending on the type of externalizing behavior. The association between attachment and direct and indirect aggressive behavior was mediated by cognitive distortions. The relation between attachment and delinquency was mediated by deviant peers and parental monitoring. We argue that clinical practice should focus on the attachment relationship between adolescent and parents in order to positively affect risk and protective factors for adolescents' aggressive and delinquent behavior.

This study aimed to examine the presence and impact of dynamic protective factors for delinquency in male adolescents with a history of sexual and/or violent offending. Bipolar factors (factors with risk and protective factors being the ends of the same continuum) were examined in male adolescents with a history of sexual offenses against younger children (CSOs; n = 341), a history of sexual offenses against peers and/or adult victims (PSOs; n = 207), and a history of nonsexual violent offenses (VOs; n = 1,356). We conducted secondary analyses on data collected with the Washington State Juvenile Court Assessment and on general recidivism data. ANOVA, correlations, Fisher's z tests, and logistic regression analyses were applied. Results showed that, in VOs, the number of risk factors was greater than the number of protective factors, whereas in PSOs, and especially CSOs, the number of protective factors was greater than the number of risk factors. Protective factors appeared to be especially important for juveniles with a history of sexual offenses for two reasons. First, the impact of most protective factors on recidivism was larger among juveniles with a history of sexual offenses than among those with a history of violent offenses. Second, protective factors added to the predictive accuracy over and above risk factors in juveniles with a history of sexual offenses, but not in those with a history of violent offenses., (© The Author(s) 2014.)

The present study examines gender differences in the association between abuse and neglect during childhood, and sexual and violent offending in juvenile delinquents. Female juvenile delinquents were more frequently victim of sexual and physical abuse and had a history of neglect and maltreatment than male juvenile offenders. Male juvenile offenders committed more sexual offenses and felony offenses against persons. Female juvenile offenders reported higher levels of having committed misdemeanor offenses against persons and violence that were not included in criminal history. A history of sexual abuse was related to sexual offending, while a history of physical abuse was related to violent offending. The relationships between victimization and offending were stronger in male juvenile offenders than in female juvenile offenders.