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Case Conceptualization

Patient: Logan Wolf
DOB: 02/25/1994
Date of interview: March 18, 2011
Date of report: March 25, 2011


Brief Description of Patient:

Mr. Logan Wolf is seventeen years old and currently resides at a group home for
youths transitioning from juvenile detention. He dropped out of high school in the
middle of tenth grade; outside of school, Logan has two sisters both from different
fathers than his own. One sister is five years older than Logan, and the other is three.
His father is currently serving a prison term for drug-related offensesdealing
drugs. Logan has never had contact with his father who was imprisoned shortly
after his birth. Additionally, his mother and father have never been married. His
mother raised him until the age of seven when she was imprisoned for a short
timethree yearsstemming from drug-related charges. After she went to
prison, Logan moved into his maternal grandmothers house that is near his
mothers home.

Logans trouble began at the age of twelve when he was caught stealing items such
as jewelry and small electronics from a home near his grandmothers house.
Charges were later dropped after he participated in a program that diverts youth
from court and into an alternative court. Two years later, at the age of 14, Logan was
arrested for getting into a fight at school. Later, at the age of fifteen he was arrested
once more for possession of marijuana with the intent to sell after getting into
another fight and sent to a secure juvenile detention facility. After this most recent
conviction, Logan has been living in a group halfway home with other youths.

Presenting Issue:

Logan Wolfe was referred to me as a juvenile delinquent; he has a history of
disregarding authority figures and rules. His care coordinating officer informed me
that he has been diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) according to
the Diagnostic And Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV (DSM-IV).

The purpose of this assessment is to determine his treatment needs as a juvenile
diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) convicted of multiple charges
including, robbery, possession of drugs, and disorderly conduct.

Although Logan is reluctant to define quite how he would like to change his
behaviors, he does acknowledge that his current situation is not ideal and that he
would like to find a solid home, ideally where he can live alone. Beyond this,
however, Logan appears pessimistic about his outlook upon life.
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During an interview with Logan concerning his past charges and what lead him to
be placed in both a juvenile detention center and a group home specializing in
delinquency, Logan made it clear that he understands that his behavior and other
acts that led to his arrests are not right. However, after later probing questions to
address the causes or sources of this behavior, it is clear that Logan lacks a clear
understanding as to what causes him to behave in such a way.

Interpersonal/Relationship Situations:

Although Logan lives with several other youths in his current home setting, he
stated that his has few if any friends that he can count on. Further, he stated that
he frequently gets into arguments with the care workers who run the group home;
asked if he has always felt this way towards adults, he says, he has no one to
depend on but himself.

Logan has several family members whom live in the same city; however, he rarely
sees them. His mother does not seem present in his life other than when she is
required to be present for hearings or other related meetings. Logan has no
relationship with his father whom he has never met. He also stated that he has never
had a romantic relationship with a person and sees no point to it. From the little
that he mentioned concerning relationships in his life, it is clear that he has little if
any positive, interpersonal relationships with anyone including family or other
youth his age.

Family History:

Logan was born in Racine, Wisconsin and lived with his mother and two sisters in a
low-income housing unit until the age of seven when his mother was convicted and
arrested relating drug-related charges; she was later sent to prison for three years.
With his two older sisters, Logan lived with his maternal grandmother for several
years. During this time, he stated that he ran away multiple times, although he did
not disclose where he went during these episodes.

After his first robbery, Logan was placed in foster care because his grandmother
was unable to care for him and his sisters. The reason she was not able to care for
him and his sisters was never given. Logan claims that he has been placed in
different foster homes at least six or seven times. When asked if he liked any of the
foster home settings, Logan stated that he was would get annoyed and disobey
rules that were set by his foster families because they were pointless or stupid.

It appears that his oldest sister, who is 22 years old, lives in Ohio and has two
babies. He has had no contact with his other sister and has no clue where she is
this sister is 20 years old. Both sisters are from different fathers. Logan has very
little contact with his mother and no contact with his father who remains in prison
stemming from drug-related offenses.
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After his juvenile detention stay, Logan has been living in a group home setting for
youths transitioning out of juvenile detention.

School/Work History:

Logan attended school until the middle of his tenth grade when he dropped out.
When asked if attended everyday, he said that he skipped a lot. Also, when asked
he if had a favorite class, he says he liked art metals; in art metals, he made things
out of pieces of metal such as brass and copper and used a torch to weld pieces
together into a design. I asked why he liked this class and he told me he liked
building something. Later in the interview, he also stated that he would frequently
be asked to leave class after outbursts and arguments with teachers; numerous
times he was sent to a room for problem students and asked to create a plan of
action to address his behavior and outbursts.

Logan has never held a job and states that he gets his money from stealing things to
sell and selling drugs off an on, when he needs money.

Attempts at Change:

According to Logan, he has not made many attempts to change of his own volition;
rather he stated that people try to and force him to create action plans for
cleaning up his behavior. However, it appears that Logan does not like being told
what to do and instead of following through on this plans, he seems to disregard
them as stupid and act according to what he sees fit, which corresponds to the
brief description given to me by his care coordinator.

Logan appears to understand that the crimes that he was caught for are illegal, but
does not appear to understand the connection between where he is now and where
he wants to be. In this way, Logan does not appear to have a plan about what he
would like to do in the future. When asked about the future, Logan stated that he has
no immediate plansa common statement used by him during this part of the
interview was I dont know.

Cultural Specific Issues:

Logan Wolfe presents himself as a African-American teen struggling with the
environmentboth family and communityin which he was born intolow-
income, presence of drugs, lack of positive role models, and little, if any, structure.
He is the youngest of three sisters, each born to a different father. Logan stated that
his father is white, and has only seen photos of him. His mother is African-American
and he also believes his sisters fathers are African-American, though he has never
met them.

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He did not share any particular religious or physical affiliation when asked about
spirituality; though it should be noted that he stated he believes in God. He says
that, although his grandmother goes to Church weekly, his mother never took him to
Church when he did live with her.

It appears that Logans diagnosis of Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) colors
most of his behavior in life; he disregards school as important and a place where he
repeatedly got angry and annoyed with being told what to do and when to do it. He
resents restrictions and rules and likes to play by his own rules which are not
quite clear. Ultimately, Logan appears to have a low opinion of himself in respect to
his future plans and appears to be a passive observer in the actions and decisions
that affect his life.

Treatment Issues:

Problem Factors:

Logans history includes three documented chargesrobbery, disorderly conduct,
and possession with intent to sell drugs. He appears to associate with peers who are
in similar situations and display similar delinquent behavior, possibly antisocial,
though this was not addressed. The socioeconomic status of his family is low and his
neighborhood is frequently the site of muggings and robberies. In regards to his
parents, it appears that he has a poor parent-child relationship with both his mother
and absent, incarcerated father. He also appears to come from a home with lax or
inconsistent discipline and may have suffered from neglect. Additionally, it appears
he was poorly monitored growing up and may have been the witness to violent
conflicts both in his home and community. (This will need to be explored more fully
in the future).

Logan appears to use physical violence or intimidation in conflicts and has used
substances in the pastmarijuana and alcohol were briefly mentioned. Before
dropping out of school in the tenth grade he displayed a poor attitude toward
schoolwork with corresponding poor attendance and grades.

He also appears to have week social ties to other individuals including his family
and the community.

Protective Factors:

Although I did not have access to any assessments, nor his scores on any previous
assessments, it appears that Logans delinquency is late onset in nature, which
bodes well for his future as an adult.

He appears to enjoy building things out of metal. He also recognizes that the crimes
he committed were illegal, but justifies them on the basis that he had no other
course of action; also, other justifications given were that he got annoyed.
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General Comments:

The impression I received after my brief interview with Logan is that he is a capable
individual, suffering from a broken family that lacks much in the way of role models
or positive and healthy attachments to others.

He appeared a bit reticent in the beginning of the interviewhis answers were very
mono-syllabicand wary as to why I might want to interview him; he also required
prompts during some questions in order to gain a better understanding of some of
his answers. His demeanor changed, however, after about thirty minutes; he then
appeared more at ease and more willing to answer in lengthier responses until the
conclusion of the interview.

While he did not answer every question to the depth that I would have appreciated,
he was able to sketch a rough outline of his life and circumstances that have led him
this far in order for me to understand and create an adequate treatment plan to
address his behavior.

He did not maintain eye contact and was more often than not, looking out a window
that was near the table. His clothing was also presentable and something I would
expect to see others his age and in his neighborhood wearingbaggy jeans that sit
sag below the waist and a large graphic t-shirt. Additionally, he did become touchy
when asked more about his family life and his aspirations about the future. He also
did not deny his actions or behavior when asked what he did and appeared
unaffected when asked about his behavior towards others.

Summary:

Based on the information gathered during this interview, it appears that Mr. Logan
Wolfe has displayed and does display symptoms that correspond with a diagnosis of
Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) according to the criteria set by the DSM-IV. His
delinquency appears to correspond with the late-onset variety; Logan may benefit
from interventions both to combat his ODD diagnosis and his self-management in
respect to his relationships with others and society. In order to successfully
intervene on Logans behalf, he must be willing to want a change and at this time, I
am unsure if he is ready.







Thomas Payne