Whitney D. Gunter

Youth Victimization School Climate or Deviant Lifestyles

Despite much focus on school violence, there has been little research that explores the relationship between offending and victimization in various school climates. School climate theory suggests that the school’s social system, culture, milieu, and ecological structure affect student outcomes including academic performance, delinquency, and more recently, victimization. Hierarchical analysis of data from 5,037 11th-grade students in 33 schools found that offending behavior was the strongest predictor for both minor and more serious forms of victimization. School climate, specifically the social cohesion of schools, reduced serious violent victimization risk. However, school climate did not affect the relationship between offending and victimization, and was not substantially modified when characteristics of the school environment were considered.

Self-Cutting and Suicidal Ideation among Adolescents: Gender Differences in the Causes and Correlates of Self-Injury

In recent years, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) among adolescents has been identified as alarmingly common place. Some studies have suggested that more than one in eight adolescents have engaged in self-cutting or other self-injuring behaviors. Even more of a concern is that self-injury often foreshadows suicide or suicide attempts. With self-cutting common in middle and high schools, understanding the antecedents and correlates of such behavior may help counselors and others public health officials identify troubled students and initiate preventative measures. This study utilizes data from 2,639 high school students from the Delaware Youth Risk Behavior Survey to investigate the gender differences in NSSI and suicidal ideation. Overall, 13% reported engaging in NSSI within the past year, with females reporting significantly higher rates (17%) of NSSI than males (9%). Results indicate that there are significant gender differences in NSSI and suicidal thoughts based upon previous victimization experiences, reported substance use, depression, health behaviors, and sexual orientation.

Causal or spurious: Using propensity score matching to detangle the relationship between violent video games and violent behavior

Throughout the past decade, numerous states have passed legislation to prohibit the sale of violent video games to children, usually in conjunction with an argument that exposure to violent media increases violent behavior. However, the link between video games and violence is not yet fully understood. This study uses propensity score matching as a method to more adequately address the underlying issue of causality. Using a sample of 6567 8th grade students, these analyses test whether there is a causal link between playing violent video games and violence, non-violent deviance and substance use. Results indicate a substantial decrease in the relationship between video games and these outcomes when a matched sample is used. This suggests that the strength of evidence supporting a relationship has likely been overestimated using other methodologies.

The many measurements of self-control: How re-operationalized self-control compares

Since Gottfredson and Hirschi’s A General Theory of Crime was published in 1990, self-control has become a major focus in criminological theory and research and the issue of measuring self-control has been the topic of many debates. Much of this research has used Grasmick and colleagues’ 1993 attitudinal scale. In 2004, Hirschi provided a new definition for self-control designed to spur new measurements of the concept. Despite this effort, only Piquero and Bouffard (2007) have provided an in-depth attempt to measure the redefined concept. This study replicates the Piquero and Bouffard measurement and a traditional measure of self-control in order to compare their effectiveness in predicting criminal or deviant behaviours. The data used come from a random sample of undergraduate students. Results indicate that the strength of the relationship between self-control and crime/deviance varies significantly based on the way self-control is measured.

Fatherhood, Community Reintegration, and Successful Outcomes

Prior research indicates that assuming family roles, such as parent or spouse, can aid in the transition from prison to the community and has been linked to positive outcomes after a period of confinement. Using data from a longitudinal study of men returning to the community after incarceration, this study examines how the relationship between fathers and their children immediately after release may impact aspects of fathers lives that are important to a successful reentry transition in the first year, such as employment, abstinence from substance abuse, and mental health. Analyses show that fathers who lived with children before incarceration and had regular contact with their children during their incarceration were more likely to be involved with their children after release. Moreover, fathers who were more involved with their children in the first few months after release, when interviewed again at 8 months out, worked more hours per week, were less likely to use illicit drugs, and were less likely to commit crime, get arrested, or violate conditions of their supervision.

Transitioning to Middle School in the Sixth Grade: A Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) Analysis of Substance Use, Violence, and Suicidal Thoughts

In recent years, public schools have moved away from traditional grade configurations with junior high schools and have shifted toward integrating sixth-grade students into middle schools. It has been argued that the effect this will have on students is to allow for additional freedom and earlier social growth. However, the counterargument to this debate is that these sixth-grade students would then be exposed to an older cohort sooner and, therefore, would be exposed to negative peer influences. This study investigates the behavioral differences between sixth-grade students in elementary schools and their counterparts in middle schools, including suicidal thoughts, violence, and substance abuse. The data used come from the 2007 middle school Delaware Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Results indicate significant differences in suicidal thoughts or actions based on the grade configuration of school they attend, though not in violence or substance use.

Therapeutic Engagement as a Predictor of Retention in Adolescent Therapeutic Community Treatment

The adolescent drug problem places a huge toll on society and a heavy burden on the criminal justice system. Research regarding the benefits of therapeutic community (TC) treatment for adolescents has shown it to be effective. Despite the ability of therapeutic communities to lower drug relapse and reduce criminality, a great deal remains unknown in terms of how the process of treatment actually works for adolescents. Using data collected as part of the Drug Abuse Treatment Outcomes Study-Adolescent, this study examines the relationship between therapeutic engagement and treatment retention. The primary findings are that measures of therapeutic engagement had a significant association with whether or not an adolescent completed treatment. Findings suggest that instruments that evaluate therapeutic engagement are important in assessing involvement in treatment, and that programming designed to engage the adolescent in TC treatment should be utilized in order to reduce the risk of premature treatment dropout.

Desisting From Prescription Drug Abuse: An Application of Growth Models to Rx Opioid Users.

Modern desistance research has examined many facets of desistance, in terms of theoretical predictors of desistance and recidivism, and in terms of differing types of offending. Though predicting desistance from illegal drug use is among these topics, no research to date has examined the predictors of desisting from prescription opioid abuse. This study uses longitudinal data from 318 prescription opioid users to analyze the effects of various predictors of desistance on declining nonmedical prescription opioid use, with an emphasis on gender differences among participants. Results indicate that theoretical and demographic characteristics correspond with differing rates of decline and further vary by gender.

Health Behaviors and Standardized Test Scores: The Impact of School Health Climate on Performance

Research has found that many characteristics are related to performance on standardized tests. Many of these are not necessarily “academic” attributes. One area of this research is on the connection between physical health or lifestyles and test performance. The research that exists in this area is often disconnected with each other and tends to focus on a limited number of factors. Moreover, the impact of the school climate, as related to health behaviors, has not been examined. This study uses data from 32 schools over 4 years to examine the relation between health norms and average test performance while controlling for demographics and other school characteristics in a multivariate regression. Results suggest that some health behaviors have significant impacts on average school test scores.

Therapeutic Engagement and Posttreatment Substance Use in Adolescent TC Clients: Direct and Indirect Effects

The problem of adolescent drug use places a huge toll on society and a heavy burden on the criminal justice system. Despite the ability of therapeutic communities (TCs) to lower drug relapse, a great deal remains unknown in terms of how the process of treatment actually works for adolescents. Using data collected as part of the Drug Abuse Treatment Outcomes Studies–Adolescents, this study examines the direct and indirect relationship between therapeutic engagement and posttreatment substance use. Though there are few direct effects of therapeutic engagement on substance use, findings suggest that those more engaged in treatment are more likely to complete treatment and, therefore, less likely to use substances. This suggests that instruments that evaluate therapeutic engagement are important in assessing involvement in treatment, and that programming designed to engage the adolescents in TC treatment should be utilized to reduce the risk of posttreatment relapse.