Validity of the Massachusetts Youth Screening Instrument–2 (MAYSI–2) Scales in Juvenile Justice Settings

Abstract

High prevalence rates of psychological problems among juvenile offenders underscore the need for effective mental health screening tools in the juvenile justice system. In this study, we evaluated the validity of the Massachusetts Youth Screening Instrument–2 (MAYSI–2) developed by Grisso and Barnum (2001) to identify mental health needs of adolescents in various juvenile justice settings. The sample was 1,192 adolescents (1,082 boys and 110 girls) admitted into Virginia juvenile correction facilities between the dates of July 2004 and June 2006. Analyses revealed higher MAYSI–2 scale scores for girls than for boys and MAYSI–2 scale intercorrelations were similar to those reported in the MAYSI–2 manuals (Grisso & Barnum, 2003, 2006). We also evaluated the concurrent validity of MAYSI–2 scales by examining scale score correlations with related and unrelated extratest variables. Results showed strong convergent validity for several MAYSI–2 scales.

Acknowledgment

We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of the Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Juvenile Justice for their assistance in compiling this data set.

Notes

¹Of note, the participant's age was only available for those juveniles who were eventually placed in corrections. Because age was recorded based on when the individual entered the Reception and Diagnostic Center—which could have been as long as several months after the juvenile was admitted to detention and administered the MAYSI–2—the age we report in this article may overestimate the actual age of the individual at the time they were administered the MAYSI–2. Thus, although the recommended age range for the MAYSI–2 is 12 to 17 years, 58 eighteen-year-olds were included in the final sample because they were likely younger than 18 at the time of their MAYSI–2 administration.

^a Chi-squared tests were not conducted because these tests were restricted to variables with cell frequencies > 5 for all outcomes.

*p ≤ .05.

** p ≤ .01. ns = not significant.

^a n = 1,082.

^b n = 110. For girls, scores cannot be obtained on the MAYSI–2 scale Thought Disturbance.