Systematic Review: Intervention Strategies for Treating Relational Aggression in Female Juvenile Offenders and At-Risk Female Youth

Objective: Female juvenile offenders commonly display a distinct form of aggression, known as relational aggression, which demands its own dedicated focus and specialized intervention approaches, as exemplified by the limited yet steadily growing body of research on the issue. This review set out to explore current relational aggression interventions specifically designed for incarcerated female youth, which was subsequently broadened to include at-risk female adolescents. Method: In stage 1, the effectiveness of intervention strategies targeting relationally aggressive behaviors in female juvenile offenders was systematically reviewed. As so few studies existed in the peer-reviewed literature, in stage 2, a review was conducted with a broader scope examining intervention strategies only with at-risk female adolescents. Results: The electronic databases JBI EBP, PsycINFO, and PubMed/MEDLINE were searched for the systematic review. At stage 1, 16 full-text articles were reviewed for quality, and of these articles, 13 were excluded due to sample population, outcomes, and lack of measuring correlates of relevant behavior. At stage 2, 12 full-text articles were reviewed for quality, and of these articles, 6 were excluded for the above-mentioned reasons. Conclusion: There are promising advancements in the development and implementation of interventions tailored to attenuate relationally aggressive behaviors in female youth deemed at risk or currently in the juvenile justice system. Plain language summary: Female juvenile offenders commonly display a distinct form of aggression, known as relational aggression. The effectiveness of intervention strategies targeting relationally aggressive behaviors in female juvenile offenders and subsequently at-risk female adolescents were systematically reviewed in 2 separate stages. It was found that there were promising advancements in the development and implementation of interventions tailored to attenuate relationally aggressive behaviors observed in young females deemed at-risk or currently in the juvenile justice system.