For adolescents, predictors of SVJ include joining delinquent gangs and drug dealing. Interventions involve home, community Interventions to prevent SVJ offending include multiple component programs such as parent management training, functional family therapy, home visitation of pregnant teenagers, peer mediation and conflict resolution, school organization interventions and comprehensive community mobilization. The most successful intervention programs are those that involve the home, school and community. Effective SVJ prevention must include effective screening for children who are exposed to adverse circumstances, access by families and youth to early intervention services, interventions that use a comprehensive public health approach and prevention of gang formation. The treatments that are most effective for noninstitutionalized offenders are individual counseling, interpersonal skills and behavioral contracting.
Aftercare programs are essential to reduce the likelihood of re-offending.
For institutionalized offenders, the most effective interventions for SVJ offenders are interpersonal skills and teaching in the family home. The study group recommended that a federal program on SVJ offenders should pursue surveys to measure the prevalence of SVJ offenders, especially in large metropolitan areas. Other recommendations included longitudinal studies to learn more about development from birth through early adulthood in at-risk youth, and studies to identify protective factors in disadvantaged neighborhoods. More data on female SVJ offenders and SVJ offenders in rural areas are needed as well. It's now up to each community to use this important information, not only to garner the necessary resources, but to motivate the community's collective will to change the odds for these children.