No abstract

This study examined the structure and symptom specific patterns of post traumatic distress in a sample of 1,581 adolescents who reported exposure to at least one traumatic event. Symptom reporting patterns are consistent with past literature in that females reported more symptoms than males and older youth reported more symptoms than did their younger peers. Young people reporting exposure to exclusively violent type traumas were also found to be more likely to endorse symptoms than peers exposed exclusively to non violent type traumas. Confirmatory factor analysis provided stronger support for a four-factor model of PTSD than either the DSM-IV model or an alternate model. Further examination of the four factor model revealed gender differences in factor loadings with small to moderate effect sizes for recurrent, distressing memories, flashbacks, restricted affect, difficulty remember details, detachment, limited future orientation, hypervigilance and startle symptoms. Differences in factor loadings with the four factor model were also noted between younger and older adolescents, with medium to large effect sizes on the arousal items. In contract, comparison of the factor loadings revealed only small differences between youth exposed exclusively to violent traumatic stressors and those exposed exclusively to non violent traumatic stressors, suggesting relative similarity between these two groups.

Providing relevant, timely forensic evaluations is challenging because of the differing worlds of mental health and law. In this study, the authors evaluated an innovative, court-based clinic model for improving acquisition and use of clinical information in juvenile court in a 3-year pilot project prior to wide-scale implementation. The authors investigated the extent to which 170 evaluations of parents in the child protection division met criteria recommended in the forensic literature by comparing reports across four groups categorized by source (inside or outside court; part of pilot project or not). Findings suggested greater use of recommended practices and more timely, consistent reports by the pilot clinic. The findings provide preliminary support for the model and guidance for improving forensic evaluations in child protection.