	Juvenile Justice Corrections Services

Introduction

Administration and Management

Service Delivery Administration Standards

Service Standards

JJC 10: Development of Social and Independent Living Skills

Youth are engaged in programming and activities that help them acquire and strengthen the social and independent living skills needed to become responsible, connected, and law-abiding members of their communities.

Research Note: Some research suggests that cognitive behavioral interventions and interpersonal skills training are promising ways to address youths’ risks and needs. Literature also distinguishes the skill development described here from the treatment addressed in previous core concept standards (such as JJC 7 and 8), noting that while “treatment” is designed to help youth address specific problems and disorders, it will not necessarily help them develop competencies that can help them succeed. This literature also suggests that while not all youth are in need of treatment services, nearly all can benefit from the training and other activities described below.

NA The organization provides only detention services.

JJC 10.01

Youth are helped to develop social skills needed to:

solve problems, resolve conflicts, and make decisions;
control impulses and manage anger; and
interact appropriately with others.

JJC 10.02

Youth are helped to understand the impact of past actions and behaviors, and taught how to make responsible, pro-social decisions in the future.

JJC 10.03

Youth are helped to develop age-appropriate skills they will use in daily life after confinement.

Interpretation: Relevant skills may include, but are not limited to: identifying networks of support; time management; accessing and using community resources; pursuing educational and occupational opportunities; household management; budgeting and money management; and accessing available financial assistance.

JJC 10.04

Pregnant and parenting youth are helped to develop skills and knowledge related to:

basic caregiving routines;
child growth and development;
meeting children’s health and emotional needs;
environmental safety and injury prevention;
parent-child interactions and bonding;
age-appropriate behavioral expectations and appropriate discipline; and
pregnancy planning and the spacing of children.

NA The organization does not serve pregnant or parenting youth.

JJC 10.05

Personnel model pro-social behavior and attitudes in daily interactions at the facility, and youth are expected and encouraged to do the same.

JJC 10.06

Youth have opportunities to practice and demonstrate their skills outside the facility, when possible and appropriate.

Interpretation: Relevant opportunities to practice and demonstrate skills may include community service projects, vocational placements, and visits to the family or home community. As referenced in JJC 5.06, it may be appropriate to collaborate with others to identify meaningful ways for youth to contribute to the community.

Research Note: Literature emphasizes that there is more to competency development than skills training, and notes that youth also need opportunities to use skills in productive, valued activities.

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	PURPOSE: Juvenile Justice Corrections Services promote public safety by helping youth overcome problems and develop the attitudes and skills needed to make responsible choices, avoid negative behaviors, and become productive, connected, and law-abiding citizens.

RELATED FILES


	SERVICE One or more organization-operated programs or activities that have a common general objective and deploy the organization's material and human resources in a planned and systematic manner. An organization that publicly promotes or identifies itself in writing as offering a service, is licensed to deliver a service, assigns personnel and/or space to a service, or allocates financial resources to a service is considered to offer that service.


	CONNECTED The means by which individuals access services that may or may not be provided by the organization itself. These terms are used interchangeably when individuals are connected to services either directly or by referral. See also LINKED.


	RESEARCH For purposes of COA accreditation, all forms of internal or external research involving persons served except internal program evaluation and outcomes research, or educational projects performed by students and interns that are part of their professional training.


	TRAINING Instruction so as to make fit, qualified, or proficient in a skill or body of knowledge.


	COMMUNITY A specific group of people living in the same locality and who may share a common culture, values, and norms. Communities can also be defined by race, religion, ethnicity, age, occupation, political status, tribal affiliation, interest in particular problems or outcomes, or other common bonds. The term "community" encompasses worksites, schools, tribes, residential neighborhoods, business districts, recreational areas, and health and human service sites.


	PREVENTION Actions taken to minimize and/or eliminate social, psychological, or other conditions. Prevention can occur at the individual, group, community, and societal levels and enhances opportunities to achieve positive fulfillment.


	PLANNING The process of specifying objectives, evaluating the means for their achievement, and exercising deliberate decision making about appropriate courses of action.


	PERSONNEL The body of employees and/or volunteers that carries out the organization's tasks under the organization's administration and/or supervision. This definition does not include foster parents who are specifically referenced in relevant standards


	PRACTICE Established actions or ways of proceeding in the regular performance of organizational duties. Policies and procedures often guide practice.


	FAMILY Two or more people who consider themselves family and who assume obligations, functions, and responsibilities generally essential to healthy family life. Child care and child socialization, income support, long-term care, and other caregiving are among the functions of family life. The definition of "family" will rest with an individual's indication of who plays a family member role, including current or former foster family, adoptive family, extended family members, fictive kin, or significant others. Organizations that believe family is the central constellation in a child's life, and that family attachments are of primary importance for human development, will strive to work with professional staff to develop a common understanding of "family."


	MANAGEMENT See ADMINISTRATION