Delinquency and Jesness Inventory Scores

Investigated validity implications of the Jesness Inventory for institutionalized male adolescent delinquents. This population showed deviant mean T scores on this inventory's Asocial Index (69.5) and on its Social Maladjustment (65.2) subscale. Scores on 4 of the 10 subscales, Social Maladjustment, Value Orientation, Autism, and Manifest Aggression, correlated positively (p less than .0001) with both frequency of prior arrests and number of previous institutionalizations. This pattern of significant relationship is consistent with research reported in other studies and it was concluded that the present results provide additional support for the research and diagnostic uses of this instrument in assessing adolescent social maladjustment.