Current research has established that male adolescents with illegal sexual behavior (AISB) are a heterogeneous population. We aimed to explore this within-group heterogeneity to derive clinically relevant groups of AISB using the Millon Adolescent Clinical Inventory (MACI). We then compared these groups on selected covariates (age at intake, minority status, and child maltreatment history) and distal outcomes (general, nonviolent, violent, drug, and sexual recidivism 5 years after release) to identify any differences. The sample consisted of 698 male AISB (age = 11-20 years) referred to a secure juvenile facility for assessment and treatment. A latent profile analysis (LPA) was conducted using the clinical and personality scales of the MACI to identify AISB groups and examine group differences. Four unique AISB groups emerged: Anxious, Depressed/Anxious, Dysthymic/Disorganized, and Antisocial. Groups differed on age at intake and child maltreatment history, but not minority status. At 5-year follow up, groups differed in their rates of general, nonsexual, and violent recidivism but not in their rates of sexual or drug recidivism. Clinically relevant AISB groups can be identified using personality and psychopathology indicators from the MACI. Implications for the assessment and treatment of AISB, as well as directions for future research are discussed.
Some adjudicated adolescents receive treatment for their offenses in residential facilities. Detained adolescents' engagement in either low levels of compliant behavior or excess behavior (e.g., swearing, gestures) while following commands from residential personnel may result in decreased opportunities for those youth to access preferred activities. The current study employed nonconcurrent multiple baseline across participants designs to evaluate the effects of a procedure to increase seven detained adolescents' quiet compliance with academic and vocational demands. Results show that problem behavior decreased to zero or near-zero levels for each participant during simulated conditions and suggest that self-control, alone or in combination with a differential reinforcement of low rate behavior for omitting problem behavior, may have been responsible for the behavior changes. We discuss some clinical implications of the findings.
Prior empirical examinations of the factor structure of the Millon Adolescent Clinical Inventory (MACI; Millon, 1993, 2006) have produced mixed results and have not included confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). In this study, we examined the internal structure of the MACI in a sample of 1,015 detained adolescent boys (ages 13 to 19). The sample was randomly divided into independent samples. Replication of prior factor models was first attempted in one half (n = 505) of the sample (Sample 1) and disconfirmed these models on the current data. An exploratory factor analysis was then conducted and revealed a 2-factor model representing internalizing and externalizing dimensions. Next, CFA was conducted with Sample 2 (n = 510) and revealed acceptable fit when the model was revised to include correlated error terms among certain scales and factor cross-loadings. Implications for the use of the MACI with adolescents as well as directions for future research are discussed.
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