Citation

Nijhof KS, Scholte RHJ, Burk WJ, Engels RCME, Van Dam C, Veerman JW. Resid. Treat. Child. Youth 2012; 29(3): 250-264.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/0886571X.2012.702525

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The present study examined the association between sexual behavior and treatment improvement of institutionalized girls. Treatment files of 174 girls (M age = 15.71, SD = 1.14) were analyzed to obtain information about the sexual behavior of girls before admission. Based on their sexual behavior, girls were classified into three subgroups: girls showing sexually normative behavior (29%), girls showing promiscuous behavior (43%), and girls with a history of forced prostitution (29%). A subsample of 95 girls was also asked to complete questionnaires to measure treatment improvement. The findings revealed no differences in self-reported problem behavior between the subgroups at entrance. Over time differences between the subgroups were found, indicating that the girls in the different subgroups might require a different treatment approach. Further research that would include larger samples is needed to explore specific treatment needs.

Keywords: Juvenile justice;
Keywords: Human trafficking