Clinical trial NCT02023827: Computerized Stage-Matched Intervention for Juvenile Offenders
Official title: Computerized Stage-Matched Intervention for Juvenile Offenders
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: UNKNOWN
Phase: PHASE2
Conditions: Delinquency
Substance Abuse
Keywords: Transtheoretical Model
Stages of change
Computer-tailored intervention
Delinquency
Substance abuse
Juvenile offender
Juvenile justice
Rise Above Your Situation (RAYS) program
Lead sponsor: Pro-Change Behavior Systems
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Iowa Juvenile Court Services
First posted: 2013-12-30
Enrollment: 1000
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 13
Standard ages: CHILD
ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: 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. In earlier research, we used an empirically validated model of behavior change, the Transtheoretical Model (TTM, the "stage" model), and expert system technology to develop the Rise Above Your Situation program (RAYS), a prototype of a multimedia computerized tailored intervention designed as an adjunct to traditional juvenile justice programs. The intervention delivers assessments and individualized feedback matched to readiness to stay out of trouble with the law and quit alcohol and drugs. At the end each session the program also generates a helpgiver report that summarizes the youth's feedback and presents concrete, easy-to-implement strategies helpgivers can use to reinforce stage-matched concepts. In the current research, the goals are to complete development of the computerized tailored intervention; develop training and other support materials for helpgivers; and assess the efficacy of the intervention package in a randomized clinical trial involving 700 medium- to high-risk court-involved juveniles aged 13-17 recruited by 54 probation officers randomly assigned to treatment or standard care. Primary outcomes will be criminal recidivism and substance abuse abstinence at 6 and 12 months follow-up.

Detailed description: Fifty-four probation officers employed by the Iowa's Juvenile Court Services agreed to participate in the study and to be randomly assigned to treatment or standard care. A Multiattribute Utility Measurement Approach (Graham, Flay, Johnson, Hansen, \& Collins, 1984) was used to ensure that probation officers assigned to the two conditions were approximately equivalent on level of education, years of experience working with juvenile offenders, number of hours of training on the TTM, and confidence using the TTM in their work.

Probation officers were responsible for recruiting moderate- and high-risk youth on probation, and delivering baseline assessment sessions and intervention sessions. However, local project site coordinators were available to provide assistance, as needed.

Computerized follow-up assessments and urine drug testing at 6 and 12 months follow-up are being administered by "trackers" at a time and place that is convenient for the youth. Study protocols include best practices (Scott, 2004) for maximizing retention at follow-up in research involving high-risk populations.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

Juvenile offenders:

* Score in the moderate- to high-risk range on the short-form Iowa Delinquency Assessment
* Age 13 to 17 at the time of recruitment
* Able to understand and read English

Probation officers:

* Employed by Iowa Juvenile Court Services
* Work with moderate- to high-risk youth

Primary outcomes:
measure: Criminal recidivism based on self-report
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
measure: Criminal recidivism based on official records
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
measure: Substance use abstinence based on self-report
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Total count of criminal behavior based on self-report
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
measure: Stage of change for staying out of trouble with the law
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
measure: Emotional distress
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
measure: Substance use frequency
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
measure: Substance-related problems
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
measure: Stage of change for quitting alcohol and drugs
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
measure: Abstinence confirmed by urine drug testing
timeFrame: 12 months follow-up
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Cedar Rapids
country: United States
facility: Iowa Juvenile Court Services, District 6
state: Iowa
city: Davenport
country: United States
facility: Iowa Juvenile Court Services, District 7
state: Iowa
city: Des Moines
country: United States
facility: Iowa Juvenile Court Services, District 5
state: Iowa
city: Sioux City
country: United States
facility: Iowa Juvenile Court Services, District 3
state: Iowa
city: Waterloo
country: United States
facility: Iowa Juvenile Court Services, District 1
state: Iowa
Study officials:
affiliation: Pro-Change Behavior Systems, Inc.
name: Deborah A Levesque, Ph.D.
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References:
citation: Levesque DA, Johnson JL, Welch CA, Prochaska JM, Fernandez AC. Computer-Tailored Intervention for Juvenile Offenders. J Soc Work Pract Addict. 2012 Jan 1;12(4):391-411. doi: 10.1080/1533256X.2012.728107. Epub 2012 Nov 8.