Despite significant concern over suicidal ideation and behavior among youth involved with the juvenile justice system, no systematic review of the literature on suicidal ideation and behavior among this population exists. This paper was developed to a) provide a comprehensive review of the available research, b) assess what we know and identify existing gaps, and c) offer a series of recommendations for future research. This review explores the prevalence of recent and past suicidal ideation and suicide attempts among justice-involved youth; gender and ethnic differences; and variables associated with suicidal ideation and attempt.
The National Center for Youth Opportunity and Justice (NCYOJ) originally maintained this resource. The NCYOJ was operated by Policy Research, Inc. and operated from 2001 to 2022 and was formerly known as the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice. The NCYOJ improved life opportunities for youth through systems and practice improvement initiatives.
This resource should be viewed as a reference document. It has not been updated since its publication. In addition, this document has not been made 508 compliant. If you would like a 508 compliant version of this document, please email communications@prainc.com.
This resource was first shared in 2013.
(PDF, 467KB)