Cognitive Behavioral Group Therapy for Anger Management in Juvenile Delinquents: Effectiveness Study in a Turkey Child Prison

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral group therapy (CBGT) for anger management in Juvenile Delinquents. The therapy program consisted of eight sessions including relaxation, self-instruction, cognitive restructuring, and assertiveness training techniques. The therapy program has been conducted for juvenile delinquents in one of the juvenile prisons in Turkey. Sixty juvenile delinquents, aged between 14 and 18, who met the inclusion criteria (treatment = 30, control = 30), were included at the beginning of the study. To evaluate the effectiveness of the program, State Trait Anger and Expression Inventory (STAXI), and Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) were administered as pre-test. At the end of the therapy program, final analysis was conducted on 35 participants (20 therapy group, 15 control group) due to participants dropout. Mixed ANOVA was conducted to examine the time (pre-test and post-test) and group effects (therapy and control group). Results showed that the participants in the therapy group showed a significant decrease in trait anger and anger expression scores, both subscales of STAXI and in the hostility subscale of BSI; a statistically significant increase in the anger control scores of the subscale of STAXI when compared to the control group. In conclusion, this culturally attuned CBGT for anger management may be applicable for Juvenile Delinquents in Turkey.

Effect of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy-Based Anger Management Training on Anger and Aggression Levels of Individuals Convicted of Violent Crimes

PURPOSE

To determine the effect of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)-based anger management training on anger and aggression levels of individuals convicted of violent crimes.

METHOD

This study was a randomized controlled trial conducted in a prison. Seventy-two individuals who met inclusion criteria were included in the study sample. The experimental group received 10 sessions of CBT-based anger management therapy over a 5-week period.

RESULTS

After CBT-based anger management training, mean total score and mean subdimension scores of the Trait Anger and Anger Expression Style Scale of the experimental group decreased significantly compared to the control group. Similarly, Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire total mean score and mean sub-dimension scores of the experimental group significantly decreased compared to the control group.

CONCLUSION

Results demonstrate that CBT-based anger management training effectively reduces anger and aggression levels among individuals convicted of violent crimes. In this regard, it is recommended that forensic psychiatric-mental health nurses, physicians, and psychologists working in correctional institutions apply CBT-based anger management training. [Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 62(10), 51-58.].

Evidence Base Update of Psychosocial Treatments for Adolescents with Disruptive Behavior

OBJECTIVE

This article expands the review of psychosocial treatments for adolescents with disruptive behavior (DB), published previously by this journal. That earlier review focused on DB treatment studies published 1966-2014; the current paper updates the evidence base by incorporating DB treatment studies published 2014-2021.

METHOD

A literature search and screening process identified 63 new studies for inclusion in this updated review. The 63 new studies were combined with 86 studies from the prior review and evaluated using Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology level of support criteria, which classify studies as well established, probably efficacious, possibly efficacious, experimental, or of questionable efficacy based on the evidence.

RESULTS

In total, 3 well-established, 7 probably efficacious, and 10 possibly efficacious treatments for adolescents with DB were identified. Further, 52 treatments were classified as experimental and 22 treatments were determined to have questionable efficacy.

CONCLUSIONS

There continues to be a large body of literature building the evidence base for treatments of adolescent DB. With a few exceptions, treatments falling into the top three evidence levels utilized more than one theoretical approach, enhancing each treatment's ability to target DB from multiple angles. Key advances include broad representation of various demographic groups, countries of origin, treatment settings, and provider types in this body of research. Despite these advances, more research is needed to address key gaps in the field, including the need for more studies on treatments tailored to adolescents with DB who are not yet involved with the juvenile justice system.

Thought Problems and Aggression Over Time Among Youth in Foster Care

Background

Youth in foster care may demonstrate high levels of aggression and thought problems. There is a growing trend to consider mental health symptoms of youth involved with the foster care system from a developmental trauma perspective.

Objective

The aim of this study was to test if trauma, race, age, and gender predicted variability in thought problems and aggression for youth in foster care.

Method

The sample (n = 303) included youth in out-of-home placements with a mean age of 14 years, a diverse racial demographic, and almost an equal percentage of males and females. Participants were assessed over three waves using a series of multilevel growth curve models.

Results

Results indicated significant decreases in thought problems and aggression and youth with higher levels of trauma reported higher initial levels and swifter decreases of both thought problems and aggression over time.

Conclusions

While trauma was associated with aggression and thought problems, results found that youth demonstrated significant decreases in aggression and thought problems over time. A better understanding of the long-term effects of trauma on thought problems and aggression of youth in foster care is needed. While our findings suggest foster care may be protective in fostering resilience, additional research on the nature of potential positive effects of foster care on aggression and thought problems is suggested.

How can adolescent aggression be reduced? A multi-level meta-analysis

Aggressive behaviour among adolescents has significant social and economic costs. Numerous attempts have been made to intervene to reduce aggression in adolescents. However, little is known about what factors enhance or diminish intervention effectiveness. The present systematic review and meta-analysis, therefore, seeks to quantify the effectiveness of interventions to reduce aggressive behaviour in adolescents and to identify when and for whom such interventions work best. Sixteen databases were searched for randomised controlled trials that assessed interventions to reduce aggression among adolescents. After screening 9795 records, 95 studies were included. A multi-level meta-analysis found a significant overall small-to-medium effect size (d = 0.28; 95% CI [0.17, 0.39]). More effective interventions were of shorter duration, were conducted in the Middle East, were targeted at adolescents with higher levels of risk, and were facilitated by intervention professionals. Potentially active ingredients were classified using the Behaviour Change Technique Taxonomy. Behavioural practice and problem solving were components of more effective interventions targeted at the general population. Overall the findings indicate that psychosocial interventions are effective in reducing adolescent aggression. Future trials need to assess the effect of individual techniques and their combination to identify the key components that can reduce aggression in adolescents.

Effects of Aggression Replacement Training on Problem Solving, Anger and Aggressive Behaviour among Adolescents with Criminal Attempts in Turkey: A Quasi-Experimental Study

The research was conducted by a pretest and post-test conducted in a quasi-experimental design which aimed to determine effectiveness of Aggression Replacement Training (ART) on problem solving, anger and aggressive behaviour among adolescents with criminal attempts in Turkey. The study included 65 adolescents with criminal attempts (32 intervention, 33 control). There was no difference between the groups in terms of average age (16.13±1.10 in the experimental group and 16.21±0.89 in the control group). After the intervention, the experimental group showed significantly decreased Trait Anger levels (t=1.906; P=0.033), increased Anger Control scores (t=2.522; P=0.008), decreased Physical Aggression scores (t=1.925; P=0.031), decreased Hostility scores (t=2.496; P=0.009), increased Social Problem Solving total scores (t=2.937; P=0.005). Increased Anger Control scores were found to be significant when compared with the control group (t=2.273, P=0.026). These results showed that ART was effective on problem solving, anger and aggressive behaviour and can be used to develop positive behaviours among adolescents with criminal attempts.

Evidence-Based Psychosocial Treatments for Adolescents With Disruptive Behavior

This article updates the earlier reviews of evidence-based psychosocial treatments for disruptive behavior in adolescents (Brestan & Eyberg, 1998; Eyberg, Nelson, & Boggs, 2008), focusing primarily on the treatment literature published from 2007 to 2014. Studies were identified through an extensive literature search and evaluated using Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology (JCCAP) level of support criteria, which classify studies as well-established, probably efficacious, possibly efficacious, experimental, or of questionable efficacy based on existing evidence. The JCCAP criteria have undergone modest changes in recent years. Thus, in addition to evaluating new studies from 2007 to 2014 for this update, all adolescent-focused articles that had been included in the 1998 and 2008 reviews were reexamined. In total, 86 empirical papers published over a 48-year period and covering 50 unique treatment protocols were identified and coded. Two multicomponent treatments that integrate strategies from family, behavioral, and cognitive-behavioral therapy met criteria as well-established. Summaries are provided for those treatments, as well as for two additional multicomponent treatments and two cognitive-behavioral treatments that met criteria as probably efficacious. Treatments designated as possibly efficacious, experimental, or of questionable efficacy are listed. In addition, moderator/mediator research is summarized. Results indicate that since the prior reviews, there has been a noteworthy expansion of research on treatments for adolescent disruptive behavior, particularly treatments that are multicomponent in nature. Despite these advances, more research is needed to address key gaps in the field. Implications of the findings for future science and clinical practice are discussed.

Development of the Juvenile Justice Anger Management Treatment for Girls

Female juvenile offenders exhibit high levels of anger, relational aggression, and physical aggression, but the population has long been ignored in research and practice. No anger management treatments have been developed specifically for this population, and no established anger management treatments are empirically supported for use with delinquent girls. Thus, to alleviate anger and reduce the frequency and severity of aggressive behaviors in this underserved population, we developed the gender-specific, Juvenile Justice Anger Management (JJAM) Treatment for Girls. This cognitive-behavioral intervention was adapted from the Coping Power Program (Lochman & Wells, 2002), a school-based anger management treatment for younger children that has established efficacy and effectiveness findings with its target populations. This paper describes how the content of JJAM was developed to meet the unique needs of adolescent girls in residential juvenile justice placements. It also traces the process of developing a manualized treatment and the steps taken to enhance efficacy and clinical utility. An overview of the treatment, a session-by-session outline, an example session activity, and an example homework assignment are provided. A randomized controlled trial is currently being conducted to evaluate the efficacy of the JJAM Treatment for Girls.

Guidelines for Adapting Manualized Interventions for New Target Populations: A Step-Wise Approach Using Anger Management as a Model

The use of manual-based interventions tends to improve client outcomes and promote replicability. With an increasingly strong link between funding and the use of empirically supported prevention and intervention programs, manual development and adaptation have become research priorities. As a result, researchers and scholars have generated guidelines for developing manuals from scratch, but there are no extant guidelines for adapting empirically supported, manualized prevention and intervention programs for use with new populations. Thus, this article proposes step-by-step guidelines for the manual adaptation process. It also describes two adaptations of an extensively researched anger management intervention to exemplify how an empirically supported program was systematically and efficiently adapted to achieve similar outcomes with vastly different populations in unique settings.

Obstacles to research in residential juvenile justice facilities: recommendations for researchers

Federal, state, and local initiatives to improve the treatment and outcomes for young people in the juvenile justice system prompt the need for additional research. Despite the call for empirical data, researchers encounter numerous obstacles when initiating and conducting studies in detention and post-adjudication facilities. These obstacles are often only briefly mentioned in publications, but they can interfere with researchers' desires and abilities to conduct studies in these settings. This paper reviews legal, ethical, and methodological challenges to successfully conducting research in detention and residential post-adjudication placements, including selecting and accessing appropriate facilities, obtaining institutional review board approval, seeking parental permission and youth assent, reporting child abuse and neglect, responding to participants' threats to harm self or others, working effectively with facilities, juvenile justice system-related attrition, and the dissemination of research findings. Recommendations are presented to help investigators anticipate obstacles when designing and executing research protocols to prevent interference and to encourage ethical responses and successful study completion.