A trauma-informed model of care in Texas juvenile justice facilities: evaluation and implications

Abstract

This study evaluated whether experiencing a trauma-informed model of care within a juvenile justice (JJ) setting predicted behavioral noncompliance within secure, residential facilities. Based on Bath’s Pillars of TraumaWise Care, measures of safety, connection, and coping were used to predict behavioral noncompliance as influenced by adolescents’ experience of a model of trauma-informed care. Additionally, feedback from JJ staff and interventionists was collected to aid in the interpretation of the results. The results from the study indicated that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) were positively associated with in-facility assaults, while exposure to the Texas Model was negatively associated with assaults. Further analyses indicated that exposure to the Texas Model predicted less assaults amongst all youth, regardless of their number of ACEs. Adolescents’ feelings of unsafety were found to mediate the relationship between ACEs and assaults, and youth who experienced the Texas Model felt greater safety at low, average, and high levels of ACEs. The interviews conducted with JJ staff and trauma-informed interventionists supported the quantitative results. The findings from this study can be used to inform the field’s current understanding of trauma-informed care on in-facility behavior and implications for usage within a JJ setting.