| The Behavioral Employment Program (BEP) is one of a number of promising interventions focused on job training and placement as a means of reducing juvenile recidivism among gang-affiliated youth. Rehabilitative interventions are presumed to work best for offenders who are motivated to change, but court-referred clients and gang-affiliated youth may enter therapy with low levels of readiness to change. Eliciting commitment language during treatment may improve readiness to change, increase treatment compliance, and promote positive outcomes. BEP counseling sessions of 5 probation-referred, gang-involved youth between the ages of 17 and 18 were audio-recorded and coded for the presence of commitment language. Multilevel model-fitting analyses showed a significant positive relationship between the strength of commitment language and homework compliance. However, the strength of commitment language did not significantly predict more hours employed. These findings imply that gang-involved youth who make stronger commitment statements are more likely to actively engage in counseling activities. Further research on possible therapist techniques for promoting juvenile offenders' commitment language during counseling is needed. |
