Role of gender and traumatic experiences in predicting mental health problems in juvenile detainees

Ample research suggests that girls in detention have a higher prevalence of mental health (MH) problems than boys, and a good deal of research also shows that detained juveniles who have a history of traumatic experiences (TE) also have a higher prevalence of MH problems. Because it has been determined that detained girls also report a higher incidence of TE than boys, the effects of gender and TE on MH status seem to be intertwined. The purpose of this study was to examine a meditational model that explains gender differences in MH through the mechanism of gender differences in TE. Alaska Screening Tool MH and MAYSI-2 TE indications on 1,481 juveniles detained in one of 11 juvenile detention centers in Idaho were analyzed in a meditational model using logistic regression methods. The results showed that the total effect of gender on MH problems was statistically significant (odds ratio = 1.62), and this effect was not reduced to zero after entering TE into the equation (odds ratio = 1.47). A test of the indirect effect of gender on MH problems through TE was conducted and found to be statistically significant (Z = 3.93, p < .001). In sum, females are at significantly increased odds of mental health problems and a significant part of this increased risk is attributable to their increased prevalence of trauma exposure. These results suggest that girls entering juvenile detention centers should be considered more likely to suffer from MH problems, perhaps as a result of TE.