Journal of Pediatric Psychology Advance Access published online on September 9, 2009
Journal of Pediatric Psychology, doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsp069
A Review of HIV Prevention Interventions for Juvenile Offenders
1Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center, Rhode Island Hospital, 2The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, and 3Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School
All correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Marina Tolou-Shams, Bradley Hasbro Children's Research Center, One Hoppin Street, Coro West, Suite 204, Providence, RI 02903, USA. E-mail: mtoloushams{at}lifespan.org
| Abstract |
|---|
Objective To conduct a critical review of all HIV prevention intervention studies conducted with adolescents in juvenile justice settings to inform future intervention development. Method PubMed and PsycInfo database searches were conducted for peer-reviewed, published HIV prevention intervention studies with juvenile offenders. Results Sixteen studies were identified (N = 3,700 adolescents). Half of the projects utilized rigorous methodologies to determine intervention effect on behavior change, such as conducting a randomized controlled trial (n = 8). Nine studies reported behaviors at least 3 months post-intervention and five out of nine showed decreases in sexual risk behavior. Conclusions Several HIV prevention programs with juvenile offenders have led to sexual risk reduction, although effect sizes are modest. Most existing programs have neglected to address the impact of family, mental health, and substance use on HIV risk. More work is needed to develop evidence-based interventions that include HIV prevention strategies relevant and appropriate for the juvenile justice setting.
Key words: adolescents; HIV prevention; offenders; review..
Received December 15, 2008; revision received July 10, 2009; accepted July 12, 2009