June 20, 2013

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What Works

Groundbreaking Studies from the Field of Criminal Psychology

 

Criminal Psychologist D. A. Andrews of Carleton University, author of An Overview of Treatment Effectiveness: Research and Clinical Principles, and co-author of The Psychology of Criminal Conduct(1994, 1998) has summarized his groundbreaking studies oftreatment effectiveness and criminal psychology. The following synopsis is reprinted with permission from Dr. Andrews.


What does NOT work?

  1. Severityof official processing and criminal sanctions is associated with slightly increased recidivism rates.

     

  2. Punishment alternatives or intermediate sanctions, including shock incarceration, boot camps, intensive probation supervision, scared straight, fines, day centers, community services orders, restitution, mandatory arrest of male batterers, etc., on average, not one of the new range of alternative punishments has been found to be associated with reduced recidivism.

     

  3. Andrews and Bonta (1994) conclude “Whatever the social role of punishment, there I no evidence that a reliance on just deserts or deterrence-based sanctioning is followed by meaningful reductions in recidivism.”

     

  4. The mean effect of correctional treatment service, averaged across a number of dispositions, was clearly greater and more positive than that of criminal sanctioning without the delivery of treatment services.


What WORKS?

Intervention and treatment services and programs that: are structured and focused around a treatment plan built upon good assessment.

  • builds an environment of trust and rapport with the offender using motivational and client oriented methods.
  • that focus on dynamic predictors and criminogenic needs as the targets of treatment.
  • are of longer duration with meaningful contact.
  • are provided under the scrutiny of an evaluator.
  • are cognitive-behavioral focused using cognitive restructuring (intrapersonal and self management skill building) and interpersonal skill building approaches.
  • attend to extrapersonal circumstances, e.g. family peers.
  • focus on developing prosocial and community responsible behavior integrating moral and values development.
  • are structured one-on-one paraprofessional companionship programs.
  • match program intensity to offender’s level of risk.
  • focus on higher risk cases.
  • are delivered within the group context or one on one.
  • where providers are seen as teachers, trainers as well as counselors and therapists.
  • utilizes structured experiences such as role playing, journaling, thinking reports, autobiographies, structured group sharing.
  • sees the relationship between the provider and offender as a partnership in change and in rehabilitation.
  • build expectations—high expectations for change and utilizes methods to enhance the client’s ownership of problems and of the change that occurs.
  • integrates the sanctioning process into effective treatment.