Adolescent Development

What is Emerging Adult Justice?

Emerg­ing adult jus­tice focus­es on achiev­ing pos­i­tive out­comes for peo­ple ages 18 to 25 involved in the crim­i­nal jus­tice sys­tem. Why focus on this age range? Nation­al­ly, peo­ple ages 18 to 25 are overrep­re­sent­ed through­out the crim­i­nal legal sys­tem and have the high­est recidi­vism rates. Too often, the jus­tice sys­tem … Read More

Data Snapshot Reveals Alarming Depression Rates Among Youth

OJJDP has updated its Statistical Briefing Book with a new Data Snapshot on major depressive episodes (MDE) among youth. The snapshot draws on data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. The data show one in five youth ages 12–17 experienced an MDE in … Read More

The 15 Best Grounding Exercises For Kids

Dr. Lucy Russell, is a clinical child psychologist, and most of the children she work with at her clinic show symptoms of anxiety. Grounding exercises are wonderful tools that can help children feel safe and “rooted” when fears or worries become … Read More

Social Media’s Concerning Effect on Teen Mental Health

CUR­RENT LEV­ELS OF TEEN SOCIAL MEDIA USE Vir­tu­al­ly all teens (95%) ages 13 to 17 use social media, with more than 1 in 3 report­ing that they use it ​“almost con­stant­ly.” While most U.S. social media plat­forms require users to be at least 13 years old, near­ly 40% of kids ages 8 to 12 use social media. … Read More

Seeing Whats Underneath

Seeing What’s Underneath: A Resource for Understanding Behavior and Using Language in Juvenile Court

Juvenile court can be a stressful environment— for everyone. But for court-involved youth, it can also be embarrassing, confusing, and traumatic. Youth may fail to meet adults’ expectations to be respectful and compliant or to show empathy and remorse. Youth … Read More