Reference no: EM133987337

Question

Based on the information presented below, indicate what possible diagnoses should be considered, if any. Indicate how the assessment would proceed and what additional information would be necessary. Finally, discuss what type of intervention would be most effective using the empirical literature to support your choice.

Jason is a fourteen-year-old boy who was recently arrested for vandalizing school property. He and two other students from the high school broke into the school after hours and vandalized the computer facilities by using the computers to access pornographic websites. The students then left the all the computers running on these sites and wrote profanities on the classroom white boards. Several iPads were missing.

Jason is the oldest of three siblings raised by their mother. They have very little contact with their father. Jason was an average student throughout elementary school. He had a C average and was required to attend summer school between 3rd and 4th grade to prevent repeating 3rd grade. At that time, his teacher had requested an intellectual assessment and there was no indication of a specific learning disability and indication of an IQ score between 94 and 107. As such, no further interventions were considered necessary.

Jason hit appropriate developmental milestones during his early years. He was always somewhat impulsive with regard to his behavior. Though not aggressive, he would have difficulty waiting his turn and would blurt out answers in class. Although he did not excel at academics, he was popular in sports and played both soccer and baseball. He had several good friends and also participated in extracurricular activities, including scouting and fundraising activities for the sports program.

His early years were uneventful with regard to disciplinary problems. However, when he turned 12, he was caught smoking cigarettes after soccer practice. He was grounded for two weeks. Later, at the age of thirteen, his mother noticed that money was missing from her purse and thought that she had smelled marijuana and alcohol on Jason but did not confront him at the time due to feeling overwhelmed with work and the flu. He also started staying out past his curfew and hanging out with several boys whom his mother did not know.