Browsing by Subject "psyykkinen kehitys"

Objectives. School exclusion increases the likelihood of many negative outcomes, such as continuity of antisocial behavior and criminal activity along with poor academic and occupational outcomes. However, prior studies have not considered the psychological influences of school exclusion. The aim of this study was to examine how school exclusion is associated with psychological development among adolescent offenders. In addition, the study examined the permanence of the relationship also after a 3-years follow-up period. Methods. The participants in this study were drawn from an American longitudinal study, The Pathways to Desistance, where 1354 adolescent offenders from the court systems in Arizona and Pennsylvania were followed for a period of seven years. Baseline interviews were completed between the years 2000–2003, when participants were 14–20 years old. Participants were divided into two study groups: to adolescents who had been excluded from school and to adolescents who had not. By using linear regression analysis these groups were examined regarding their psychological development (psychosocial maturity, resistance to peer influence and socioemotional development). The relationships between school exclusion and psychological development were examined both in the time of baseline interviews and after 3-years from the baseline interviews. Results and conclusions. According to the results, school exclusion was associated with poor socioemotional development among adolescents both in the time of the baseline interviews and after the 3-years follow-up period. School exclusion was also associated with poor psychological maturity but only after the 3-years follow-up period. Instead, school exclusion was not associated with resistance to peer influence at either of the two time points. The results regarding psychosocial maturity and socioemotional development support prior findings of school exclusion not be an effective way to intervene with problem behavior among adolescents. In addition, the results of this study offer new information about the psychological influences of school exclusion. The results also emphasize the importance of school bonding and positive school attendance for adolescent's psychological development. It appears that school exclusion acts as a factor that accumulates problems and risk factors, thus making the desistance process even more difficult.