Full Article: Silver, I. A., Brookstein, A. J., & D’Amato, C. (2023). Juvenile incarceration in an adult correctional facility as a risk factor for adolescent childrearing?. Journal of Adolescence, 95(1), 56-69. https://doi.org/10.1002/jad.12096
1. Background (PDF and Publication)
Adolescent childrearing remains a public health and social concern in the United States due to its association with adverse outcomes for both parents and children. Prior research has identified various risk factors for adolescent childrearing, including sexual abuse, physical abuse, and social deprivation. However, scholarship has rarely considered if adolescent involvement in the criminal legal system and, in particular, juvenile incarceration in adult correctional facilities contributes to a heightened risk of adolescent childrearing. Despite reforms, thousands of juveniles are incarcerated in adult facilities annually, where they face significantly higher risks of abuse and deprivation. This study investigates whether incarceration in adult correctional facilities during adolescence is associated with an increased likelihood of adolescent childrearing, aiming to fill a notable gap in the literature and clarify age-specific effects across the life course.
2. Summary of Findings
Using longitudinal data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97), the authors estimated the association between time spent in an adult facility from 13 to 34 and childrearing the subsequent year (14 to 35) using lagged growth curve models. The findings suggested that spending time incarcerated in adult facilities from 13 to 17 years of age increased the odds of having a child from 14 to 18. In particular, being incarcerated in an adult facility for 1-year at the age of 13 resulted in a 25% increase in the likelihood of having a child at 14, which was substantially higher than their non-incarcerated peers (~7%). This association was independent of arrest history (number of arrests), suggesting that incarceration in an adult facility before the age of 18, rather than the behavioral tendencies of the youth, increased early life-course childrearing. The effects of spending time incarcerated in adult facilities from 13 to 17 years on childrearing between 14 and 18 appeared to be the strongest for Black females, though elevated risks were observed across Black males, white males, and white females (See Figure 1). This relationship, however, was not observed for individuals who spent time incarcerated in adult facilities between 18 and 34 years of age, suggesting that periods of time incarcerated in adult facilities during adulthood did not influence childrearing from 19 to 35. These findings suggested that the unique experiences of adolescents confined in adult facilities contributes to the heightened risk of early life-course childrearing.
Notes: The probability of having a child represents the sampling distribution each year for each case across 100 simulations (100 data points each). Specifically, using the results of the random‐intercept growth curve model (Figure 1), 100 simulations were conducted to estimate if an individual had a child at the corresponding age (“1”) or did not have a child at the corresponding age (“0”). The mean across the 100 simulations was then used to calculate the probability of an individual having a child. This process was replicated 100 times—using a loop—to generate a sampling distribution of the probability of having a child characterized each year for each case.
3. Implications
This study suggests juvenile incarceration in an adult facility could be a risk factor for adolescent childrearing. The findings, more broadly, suggests that juvenile incarceration in an adult facility could disrupt ones’ developmental trajectory, increasing psychological stress, risk-taking behaviors, and desire for social connection post-release, all of which may contribute to early parenthood. Policies that divert youth from adult facilities, such as raise the age laws, could reduce unintended adolescent pregnancies. The unique vulnerabilities and experiences of youth confined within adult correctional institutions (e.g., high rates of abuse, social deprivation) warrant targeted intervention strategies, including trauma-informed care, family planning education, and reentry support. Furthermore, comprehensive sexuality education before and during reentry could help reduce the risk of adolescent childrearing and reduce the association between juvenile incarceration in an adult facility and childrearing before the age of 18. Future research should assess mediating mechanisms such as abuse exposure and examine the role of juvenile (vs. adult) correctional settings in shaping reproductive outcomes during adolescents.
4. Data and Methods
The study utilizes data from the NLSY97, a nationally representative panel of individuals born between 1980 and 1984. Due to systematic differences between individuals that have children and individuals that do not have children, the analytical sample was limited to participants who reported having at least one child between 10 and 35 years of age. Moreover, due to invariance in months spent incarcerated preceding the age of 13 and limited variance in having children after 35, the analytical time frame for the independent variables was reduced to 13–34, while the analytical time frame for the dependent variables was reduced to 14–35 (a 1‐year lag).The analytic sample included 5,731 respondents with at least one child, providing 123,108 person-year observations (approximately 22 observations per-person).
The primary dependent variable was childrearing – operationalized as a dichotomous indicator, each year from 14 to 35. The primary independent variable was the number of months an individual spent in adult facilities from 13 to 34 years of age. Covariates for the current study included, number of arrests (to control for deviance), parental incarceration, race/ethnicity, sex, early childhood conditions, and family background. Lagged random intercept and growth curve models estimated the effects of time spent incarcerated in adult facilities on subsequent childrearing the subsequent year, while simulations illustrated predicted probabilities by age, sex, and race. The study’s robust longitudinal design and attention to age-specific effects underscore its contribution to life-course criminology and public health.
Disclosure: This research brief was prepared by ChatGPT and reviewed/edited by Ian A. Silver.
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