Advancing Corrections Journal - Edition #19 - Excellence in Juvenile Justice Policy and Practice | Article 11 (ACJ19-A011)

Article 11: Virtual Reality-Assisted Therapy in Juvenile Detention (ACJ19-A011) by Abby L. Carbaugh & Jimmy Connelly

Abstract

The use of virtual reality (VR) technology to assist therapeutic interventions (Flores et al., 2018; Palanques et al., 2025) and community reentry among incarcerated adults (Ticknor, 2019; Singer, 2023; Woicik et al., 2023) has grown rapidly in recent years. To date, however, little technical guidance has been published on how to best implement VR technology in detention environments. Furthermore, few have studied how VR can be used to aid the provision of mental health services in a juvenile detention facility. This article presents the exploratory findings from a pilot study adopting VR in a secure juvenile detention center in the Midwestern United States.

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Authors

Abby Carbaugh

Juvenile Justice Data Administrator, Douglas County, United States

Abby L. Carbaugh, Ph.D., is an applied researcher with expertise in public sector and justice system research and evaluation. Dr. Carbaugh received her Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the University of Nebraska Omaha. She served as the Research Director for the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services for nearly eight years and has been the Juvenile Justice Data Administrator for Douglas County since January of 2021. In this role, she has procured over $7 million in federal grant funding to implement prevention and early intervention efforts that meet the needs of at-risk youth in the community and address the overrepresentation of youth of color involved in the adult and juvenile justice systems, as well as specific interventions for system-involved youth.

Jimmy Connelly

Jimmy Connelly, Ph.D., is a licensed mental health professional with expertise in child and adolescent treatment, Integrated Medical Settings, and Emergency Department Psychiatric care delivery. Dr. Connelly received his Ph.D in Counseling Education and Supervision from Regent University in Norfolk, Virginia. He has served as faculty at the University of Tennessee Family Medicine Residency fellowship, teaching Integrated Behavioral Health, and University of Nebraska as faculty in the Clinical Mental Health Counseling graduate program. He served as a Crisis Intervention Therapist at Douglas County Youth Center and served to develop and implement prevention and early intervention services to meet the needs of the at-risk youth residing in the juvenile detention facility.

Advancing Corrections Journal - Edition #19 - Excellence in Juvenile Justice Policy and Practice | Article 11 (ACJ19-A011)

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