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A qualitative study exploring the life‐course experiences of young offenders with symptoms and signs of ADHD who were detained in a residential care setting
Author(s) -
Young Susan,
Chesney Simon,
Sperlinger David,
Misch Peter,
Collins Philip
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
criminal behaviour and mental health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.63
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1471-2857
pISSN - 0957-9664
DOI - 10.1002/cbm.721
Subject(s) - psychology , context (archaeology) , life course approach , psychological intervention , qualitative research , developmental psychology , interpretative phenomenological analysis , psychiatry , unit (ring theory) , clinical psychology , sociology , biology , paleontology , social science , mathematics education
Background An association between attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and offending is increasingly being recognised among youths in the criminal justice system, but is poorly understood. Methods Using the qualitative methodology of Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis, we explored the self‐reported life‐course experiences of five adolescents in a young offenders' secure unit; all had been rated by teachers on Conner's scale as having ADHD, although only one had received a clinical diagnosis. Results Three master themes were identified: loss, a search for belonging and responses to confinement. The themes suggest that both the ADHD and the offending behaviour of these young men need to be understood in the context of losses that they have suffered and their responses to these losses. They showed a preoccupation with family matters and a desperate wish to find a way to belong; they almost seemed to welcome some aspects of their confinement. Conclusion These themes suggest that ‘being held’ may, to some extent, fulfil a self‐identified need for belonging and reattachment after major losses. Therapeutic interventions may need to take account of the possibility that this confinement may also validate for these young men a tendency to attribute the course of their lives to external factors. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.