OBJECTIVE This hypothetical vignette-based experiment was designed to better understand judges' and probation officers' interpretations and use of juvenile risk assessment tools in their decision-making around restrictive sanctions and confinement of youths on the basis of the youths' risk level and race. HYPOTHESES We expected that estimates of the probability of juvenile recidivism would significantly mediate the relationship between a categorical risk descriptor and decisions regarding the ordering confinement of youths. We also hypothesized that youths' race would serve as a significant moderator in the model. METHOD Judicial and probation staff (N = 309) read a two-part vignette about a youth who was arrested for the first time; in this vignette, race (Black, White) and risk level (low, moderate, high, very high) of the youth were varied. Participants were asked to estimate the likelihood that the youth would recidivate in the following year and their likelihood of ordering or recommending residential placement. RESULTS Although we found no simple, significant relationship between risk level and confinement decisions, judicial and probation staff estimated higher likelihoods of recidivism as risk-level categories increased and ordered out-of-home placements at increased rates as their estimations of the youth's likelihood of recidivation increased. The youth's race did not moderate the model. CONCLUSION The greater the probability of recidivism, the more likely each judge or probation officer was to order or recommend out-of-home placement. However, importantly, legal decisionmakers appeared to apply categorical risk assessment data to their confinement decisions using their own interpretations of risk category rather than being guided empirically on the basis of risk-level categories. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

中文翻译：

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风险与此有关：法官和缓刑官员在做出居住安置决定时对青少年风险评估的理解和使用。


目的 这项基于假设的小插曲的实验旨在更好地了解法官和缓刑官员在根据青少年的风险水平和种族对青少年进行限制性制裁和监禁的决策中对青少年风险评估工具的解释和使用。假设我们预计，对青少年累犯概率的估计将显着调节分类风险描述符与有关青少年下令监禁的决定之间的关系。我们还假设年轻人的种族将成为模型中的重要调节因素。方法 司法和缓刑人员 (N = 309) 阅读关于一名首次被捕的青少年的两部分小故事；在这个小插曲中，年轻人的种族（黑人、白人）和风险水平（低、中、高、非常高）各不相同。参与者被要求估计青少年在下一年再次犯罪的可能性以及他们订购或建议住宿安置的可能性。结果 虽然我们发现风险水平和监禁决定之间没有简单、显着的关系，但司法和缓刑人员估计，随着风险水平类别的增加，累犯的可能性也会更高，并且随着他们对青少年再次犯罪的可能性的估计，他们会以更高的比例下令进行户外安置。重犯增加。年轻人的种族并没有调节模型。结论 累犯的可能性越大，每位法官或缓刑监督官就越有可能下令或建议家庭外安置。 然而，重要的是，法律决策者似乎使用自己对风险类别的解释将分类风险评估数据应用于他们的限制决策，而不是根据风险级别类别进行经验指导。 （PsycInfo 数据库记录 (c) 2023 APA，保留所有权利）。