Internalizing Disabilities Among Incarcerated Girls From Mexico and the United States

Abstract

This article examines the relationship between internalizing dimensions of emotional and behavioral disorders such as depression, and anxiety, with unresolved trauma and abuse among incarcerated girls in Mexico and the United States. The goal is to arrive at a better understanding of (a) how mental health conditions may contribute to deviant behavior, (b) how girls with disabilities may be disproportionately punished because of their gender and disability status, and (c) the limited capabilities of personnel in correctional facilities to diagnose disabilities in incarcerated girls or identify girls who have not been diagnosed. The results, supported by the chivalry hypothesis, demonstrate the need for a gender-informed response to dealing with girls’ deviant behaviors, as well as trauma-informed practices to address mental health disabilities and victimization among delinquent girls in both the United States and Mexico.

Effective family‐based program options for justice‐involved youth

“…IDEIA's definition of EBD, as stated in Pérez‐Ramírez et al. (2023) includes internalizing (i.e., emotional) and externalizing (i.e., behavioral) dimensions. In order to qualify for special education support in schools, students must show one or more of the following characteristics: (a) an inability to form and maintain positive interpersonal relationships with peers or teachers, (b) a general and pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression, (c) fears associated with school personal or school problems or inappropriate types of feelings under normal circumstances, or (d) schizophrenia (IDEIA, 2004).…”

“…In the past decade, the number of violent crime arrests involving youth decreased approximately 56%; however, there were still an estimated 424,300 arrests for violent crime involving children/youth younger than 18 years old in 2020 (Puzzanchera, 2022). Children and youth committing felonies are more likely to invoke more punitive than rehabilitative sentiment.…”