PTSD Among Families of Juvenile Justice-Involved Youth: Relation to Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Health Problems

Research documents trauma experiences and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among juvenile justice-involved youth; however, much less is known about the trauma and PTSD of their parents. This manuscript examines the extent to which youth PTSD and parent PTSD relate to youth's mental health problems (e.g., anxiety, depression), emotional regulation, and drug use. Data are from a baseline sample of 149 youth-parent dyads recruited from the Los Angeles County Juvenile Court System to participate in an efficacy trial of EXPORT/STRIVE, a family-based intervention administered to both youth and their parents or guardians. The intervention aimed to reduce individual and interpersonal challenges youth report experiencing when leaving incarcerated settings. We compared youth's mental health problems, emotional regulation, and drug use between youth with and without PTSD, as well as between youth with parents with PTSD and without PTSD. Results illustrate a high rate of exposure to traumatic events among both youth and parents, and significant associations between youth mental health problems and emotional regulation with youth PTSD but not parental PTSD. While parental PTSD was not directly associated with youth's problems, given such high rates of trauma and PTSD among parents of juvenile justice-involved youth, family interventions targeting juvenile justice-involved youth should more intentionally consider the potential role parental trauma might play in intervention engagement and effectiveness.

Automated summary

This study examines the relationship between youth PTSD, parent PTSD, and mental health problems, emotional regulation, and drug use among youth involved in the juvenile justice system. The results show a high rate of exposure to traumatic events among both youth and parents, and significant associations between youth's mental health problems and emotional regulation with youth PTSD but not parental PTSD.