Traumas precipitating female delinquency: Implications for assessment, practice and policy

Gender and Violence Exposure in a Study of Rural Youth

“…Mehren continues ": : : the most striking thing is the extent to which they have been victims before they become victimizers" (1996, p E1.). Bowers (1990), citing Mouzakitis (1981), reported a history of physical punishment among 86% of 60 delinquent girls at a state-operated facility. Additionally, sexual victimization frequently precedes delinquency for females (Bowers, 1990;Emerson & Shelton, 2001;Mehren, 1996;Peters & Peters, 1998).…”

“…Bowers (1990), citing Mouzakitis (1981), reported a history of physical punishment among 86% of 60 delinquent girls at a state-operated facility. Additionally, sexual victimization frequently precedes delinquency for females (Bowers, 1990;Emerson & Shelton, 2001;Mehren, 1996;Peters & Peters, 1998). More than half of the delinquent girls in Bowers' study also reported a history of sexual abuse; Fine and Fishman (1968) documented a similar rate earlier among institutionalized girls.…”

“…A girl or woman who reports abuse or neglect in her childhood has a significantly greater chance of being involved in the criminal justice system later in life than one who was never abused (Bowers, 1990;Cornman, 1997;Widom, 1992). A social worker in the Los Angeles County Probation Department's residential work camp for girls (Mehren, 1996) said she was "stunned : : : by the background of mistreatment : : : ".…”

Adjudicated Adolescent Girls and Their Mothers: Examining Relationship Quality and Communication Styles

“…In fact, some professionals who work with adjudicated girls blame the parents for the girls' problems and may treat the parents punitively (Belknap et al, 1997), or they may ignore the parents' importance in the rehabilitation process (Bowers, 1990). In this population, mothers wanted help with their parenting, although they felt powerless to achieve their goals.…”

Conduct disorder in girls and boys: The identification of distinct psychosocial profiles

“…However, there is some evidence that family disorganization may be greater for girls with CD (Henggeler et al, 1987). Also, there is some evidence to suggest that females are more likely than males to have experienced sexual abuse (Bowers, 1990). …”