Girls Study Group Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Quarterly Meeting June 6, 2008 Washington, D.C. Margaret A. Zahn, Ph.D.

What led to the development of the Girls Study Group? Public Concern Increased Arrests Increased Detention

Public Concern

Trends in Juvenile Female and Male Arrest Rates a (per 100,000) and Juvenile Female Percentage of Arrests b for Simple Assault: Uniform Crime Reports, a. Rates are adjusted for the sex composition of the population and for changes in UCR coverage over time. The population base includes ages b. Female Percentage = Female Rate / (Female Rate + Male Rate)*100%. Increased Arrests

The number of detained females more than doubled between 1991 and 2001 *Data obtained from OJJDP’s Census of Juveniles in Residential Placement – Presentation made by Melissa Sickmund to Girls Study Group in September 2004.

The Arrested Girl In 2003, 29% of juveniles arrested were female Source: Snyder, Howard N., and Sickmund, Melissa Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 2006 National Report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

The Detained/Incarcerated Girl Percentage of male and female juveniles in custody by offense type, 2003 Source: Snyder, Howard N., and Sickmund, Melissa Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 2006 National Report. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

Lack of research focused on girls… “Not only are there a limited number of studies that focus specifically on female offending, but many important studies also either do not include females in their samples or do not analyze the female data separately.” --Kruttschnitt, 1994; Loeber and Farrington, 1998; West, Houser, and Scanlan, 1998

Are girls becoming more violent? What are the causes of girls’ delinquency and what are the pathways to it? Are the causes and pathways the same or different from those of boys? What delinquency intervention programs are effective for girls? Are existing risk assessment and screening instruments appropriate for girls? If so, which ones? Questions that needed to be answered

Multi-disciplinary group of researchers and practitioners Convened to:  Study patterns and causes of female delinquency  Identify effective strategies to prevent and reduce female involvement in delinquency Funded in 2004 by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) and coordinated by RTI International Girls Study Group

Girls Study Group Members Peggy Giordano, Bowling Green State University Candace Kruttschnitt, University of Minnesota Cindy Lederman, Presiding Judge, Juvenile Court, Miami-Dade County, Florida. Jody Miller, University of Missouri, St. Louis Merry Morash, Michigan State University Darrell Steffensmeier, Pennsylvania State University Giovanna Taormina, Executive Director, Girls Circle Association Donna-Marie Winn, Duke University Robert Agnew, Emory University Anne Marie Ambrose, Director, Bureau of Juvenile Justice Services, Pennsylvania Office of Children, Youth and Families Elizabeth Cauffman, University of California, Irvine Meda Chesney Lind, University of Hawaii, Manoa Gayle Dakof, University of Miami Delbert Elliott, Director, Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, University of Colorado Barry Feld, School of Law, University of Minnesota Diana Fishbein, RTI International

To develop the research foundation that communities need to make sound decisions about how best to prevent and reduce delinquency and violence by girls Girls Study Group — Ultimate Goal

Research Activities Literature Review Secondary Analysis Screening and Assessment Instrument Review Program Review and Focus Groups

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