Publications and Research
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2025
Abstract
The phenomenon of victim-offender overlap within juvenile correctional facilities is an underexplored area in criminological research. This study examines the prevalence and correlates of victim-offender overlap using data from two collections of the National Survey of Youth in Custody conducted in 2008–2009 and 2012. Our findings reveal that the victim-offender overlap group constitutes a significant proportion of incarcerated youth. Multinomial logistic regression analysis indicates that institutional factors, such as correctional officer legitimacy, in-facility gang membership, fear of inmate assault, experience of filing complaints against staff, and time served, significantly differentiate victim-offenders from the three other groups: victims-only, offenders-only, and those not involved. The results lend support to the relevance of the deprivation model in understanding institutional violence, particularly when viewed through the lens of victim-offender overlap. They also suggest that correctional environments may contribute to the perpetuation of violence, highlighting the need for a reevaluation of incarceration policies, particularly for non-violent juvenile offenders. These implications align with ongoing juvenile justice reform efforts aimed at providing smaller, therapeutic facilities and expanding community-based alternatives to incarceration. Finally, significant racial differences were identified, with Black youth more likely than White youth to be offenders-only and less likely to be victims-only or neither-victims-nor-offenders when compared to being victim-offenders. These patterns raise concerns about systemic inequities within juvenile correctional facilities that require future investigation.
Comments
This is the authors' accepted manuscript of an article originally published in the Journal of Criminal Justice, available at 10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2025.102424