Letting Work What Works-Effectively Preventing Juvenile Delinquency in the Netherlands: A Meta-Analysis of the Evidence

This meta-analysis synthesized all available evidence on the effect of judicial behavioral interventions for juvenile delinquency that have been certified by the Netherlands Youth Institute with initial indications for effectiveness. Ten (quasi-)experimental studies examining the effects of six interventions were included: TOOLS4U, Multidimensional Family Therapy (MDFT), Multi Systemic Therapy (MST), Only You Decide who you Are (OYD), Responsive Social skills Training (Re-SKT), and Responsive Aggression Regulation Therapy (Re-ART). Results showed an overall small significant positive effect of g = 0.22 (p = .032; 95% CI: 0.02, 0.42). Moderator analyses revealed that responsive cognitive behavioral therapy (Re-SKT and Re-ART) and the sports-based intervention OYD proved to be effective, whereas social skills training (TOOLS4U) and family-based systemic (parenting) interventions (MDFT and MST) showed no evidence of effectiveness. Finally, effectiveness was moderated by program integrity and offense type. The need for a stronger evidence-based approach to prevent and reduce juvenile delinquency in Dutch juveniles is emphasized.