Computerized Stage-Matched Intervention for Juvenile Offenders

少年犯计算机化阶段匹配干预

• 批准号: 7609585
• 负责人: DEBORAH A LEVESQUE
• 金额: $ 17.28万
• 依托单位: PRO-CHANGE BEHAVIOR SYSTEMS, INC.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-01-15 至 2010-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/7609585
• 关键词: Adolescent; Alcohol consumption; Alcohol or Other Drugs use; Behavioral; Cognitive; Computers; Crime; Development; Ensure; Equilibrium; Expert Systems; Feedback; Focus Groups; Goals; Individual Differences; Instruction; Intervention; Interview; Justice; Laws; Marijuana; Measures; Modeling; Motivation; Outcome; Participant; Phase; Printing; Process; Professional counselor; Readiness; Reporting; Research; Resistance Process; Resources; Self Efficacy; Societies; Staging; Substance abuse problem; Surveys; System; Technology; Testing; Treatment Efficacy; Validation; Youth; behavior change; computerized; cost; court; experience; improved; individualized feedback; interactive multimedia; juvenile delinquent; neglect; programs; public health relevance; recidivism; therapy design; usability

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Juvenile crime imposes enormous costs on victims, on society, and on juvenile offenders themselves. However, research assessing the efficacy of interventions for young offenders show, on average, only small effects on recidivism, substance abuse, and other behavioral outcomes. A major problem with existing interventions is that they tend to neglect individual differences in motivation and readiness to make positive changes. We propose to use an empirically validated model of behavior change, the Transtheoretical Model (TTM), and expert system technology to develop a computerized intervention designed as an adjunct to traditional juvenile justice programs. The intervention will deliver assessments and individualized feedback matched to readiness to stay out of trouble with the law and reduce substance use. It will also generate counselor reports that summarize the youth's feedback and present concrete, easy-to-implement strategies counselors can use to reinforce stage-matched concepts. The goals of this Phase I project are to develop and validate TTM measures for reducing marijuana and alcohol use among juvenile offenders (to supplement measures already developed for staying out of trouble with the law); to develop the baseline portion of a computer-administered, interactive, multimedia expert system program; and to test the feasibility of this approach to intervention. Juvenile offenders will participate in focus groups to generate ideas for the TTM measures (n=32) and to provide feedback on the intervention materials (n=32); cognitive interviews to ensure TTM instructions and questions are interpreted as intended (n=8); usability tests to ensure that the expert system intervention is easily navigable and provides a coherent intervention experience (n=8); and an anonymous survey for measure development and validation (n=200). Finally, 60 court- and system-involved youth will participate in a feasibility trial and receive the intervention; their counselors will receive the counselor reports. The feasibility of this approach will be established if: 1) we are able to deliver the intervention as planned to at least 90 percent of trial participants in a range of juvenile justice programs and settings; 2) participants provide positive ratings of the acceptability and usefulness of the interactive session; 3) counselors provide positive ratings of the helpfulness of the counselor reports; and 4) the intervention yields statistically significant pre-post changes on proximal measures of change-namely, youths' assessments of the benefits of staying out of trouble with the law, and the benefits of reducing substance use. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Juvenile crime imposes enormous costs on victims, on society, and on juvenile offenders themselves. We propose to use an empirically validated model of behavior change, the Transtheoretical Model (TTM), and expert system technology to develop a computerized intervention designed as an adjunct to traditional juvenile justice programs. The intervention, which delivers assessments, individualized feedback, and counselor reports matched to youths' readiness to stay out of trouble with the law and reduce substance use, has the potential to increase programs' responsivity to youths' needs; make more efficient use of scarce program resources; and improve outcomes.

描述（由申请人提供）：青少年犯罪给受害者、社会以及青少年犯罪者本身带来巨大的成本。然而，评估针对年轻罪犯的干预措施效果的研究表明，平均而言，对累犯、药物滥用和其他行为结果的影响很小。现有干预措施的一个主要问题是，它们往往忽视了做出积极改变的动机和准备程度的个体差异。我们建议使用经经验验证的行为改变模型、跨理论模型（TTM）和专家系统技术来开发计算机化干预措施，作为传统少年司法项目的辅助手段。干预措施将提供评估和个性化反馈，以配合避免触犯法律和减少药物使用的准备。它还将生成辅导员报告，总结青少年的反馈，并提出辅导员可以用来强化阶段匹配概念的具体、易于实施的策略。第一阶段项目的目标是制定和验证减少青少年罪犯吸食大麻和饮酒的 TTM 措施（以补充已经制定的避免触犯法律的措施）；开发计算机管理的交互式多媒体专家系统程序的基线部分；并测试这种干预方法的可行性。少年犯将参加焦点小组，为 TTM 措施提出想法（n=32），并就干预材料提供反馈（n=32）；认知访谈，以确保 TTM 指令和问题得到预期解释 (n=8)；可用性测试，以确保专家系统干预易于导航并提供连贯的干预体验（n=8）；以及一项针对措施制定和验证的匿名调查（n=200）。最后，60名法院和系统参与的青少年将参加可行性试验并接受干预；他们的辅导员将收到辅导员报告。这种方法的可行性将在以下情况下成立：1) 我们能够按计划向一系列少年司法项目和环境中至少 90% 的审判参与者提供干预措施； 2) 参与者对互动环节的可接受性和有用性给予积极评价； 3) 辅导员对辅导员报告的有用性给予积极评价； 4) 干预措施在最近的变化指标上产生了统计上显着的前后变化，即青少年对避免触犯法律的好处以及减少药物使用的好处的评估。公共卫生相关性：青少年犯罪给受害者、社会和青少年犯罪者本身带来巨大成本。我们建议使用经经验验证的行为改变模型、跨理论模型（TTM）和专家系统技术来开发计算机化干预措施，作为传统少年司法项目的辅助手段。该干预措施提供评估、个性化反馈和咨询报告，以配合青少年摆脱法律麻烦和减少药物使用的准备情况，有可能提高项目对青少年需求的响应能力；更有效地利用稀缺的计划资源；并改善结果。