The Impact of Juvenile Inmates' Perceptions and Facility Characteristics on Victimization in Juvenile Correctional Facilities

In this study, the authors analyze data on juvenile correctional facilities from the Performance-based Standards for Youth Correction and Detention Facilities project to predict victimization and fear among individual juvenile inmates. The authors estimate multilevel models using both facility and individual level factors. Their results depart from prior research efforts, which have focused primarily on either an importation or a deprivation model for explaining facility misconduct. In contrast, the authors find evidence of a third model that merges individual- and facility-level variables to consider individual youth's perceptions of facility rules and practices. They find that the best predictors of victimization are youths' understanding of facility rules as well as their perceptions of school quality and staff helpfulness.