Overview of Prison Programs: Rehab, Industry, Recreation, and Medical Initiatives, Slides of Criminal Law

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Institutional

Programs

Institutional Programs

• Managing
  • Constraints of Security
  • The Principle of Least Eligibility
• Classification
  • The Classification Process
  • Objective Classification Systems
• Rehabilitative Programs
  • Psychological Programs
  • Behavior Therapy
  • Social Therapy
  • Educational and Vocational Programs
  • Substance Abuse Programs
  • Religious Programs
  • The Rediscovery of Correctional Rehabilitation

“Prison program”

• any formal, structured

activity that takes prisoners

out of their cells and sets

them to instrumental tasks

“ Principle of least eligibility ”

• the doctrine that prisoners

ought to receive no goods or

services in excess of those

available to people who have

lived within the law

5 types of prison programs

rehabilitative programs increase likelihood inmates will lead a crime-free life upon release

industrial programs production of sellable goods & services outside prison, in “free” market

recreational programs provide organized social, physical, & intellectual leisure activities

maintenance programs provide services essential to upkeep & operation of prison

medical programs provide medical services to inmates

Factors limiting potential prison

programs

• security
  • need to minimize ability of inmates to obtain

weapons or contraband

• also limits potential effectiveness of some

programs (e.g., group therapy) which require

meaningful inmate interaction

• principle of least eligibility
  • prisoners can’t have it ‘better’ than citizens
  • e.g., elimination of inmate Pell grants (college)
• classification
  • risk of escape, violence, future criminality

conflicting concerns in classification

process

offender

RISK

offender

NEEDS

factors: 1.) Age 2.) Offense severity 3.) Prior prison record dangerousness

= Management tool to ‘group’ inmates appropriately

factors: batteries of tests psychiatric eval’s counseling

testing & diagnostics to determine

= Diagnostic tool to identify inmate treatment needs

new “objective”

classification systems

predictive models use statistical techniques to identify classification factors

equity- based models use explicitly defined legal variables as classification factors

• risk of escape
• risk of misconduct
• **risk of future crime

1. each factor is assigned** **points****.
2. total points defines security level**
   • offense
   • various criminal characteristics

alternative systems which seek to remove subjective judgments by classifier

“psychotherapy”

• in general terms, all forms of

“treatment of the mind,” i.e., in which therapy address the individual’s thoughts and emotions; in the prison setting, these therapies are coercive in nature.

most experts agree that mental abnormalities play an insignificant role in criminality of most offenders.

Myths in Corrections

• The Myth: Judges should send people to

prison to get rehabilitation programs.

• The Reality: Rehabilitation programs

offered in the community are twice as effective at reducing recidivism as those same programs offered in prison. (See Figure 14.1: Programs in Prison vs. the Community)

“group treatment”

• therapy for which the setting is a

group of individuals who are seen as

having the same or similar problems

or needs; designed to be highly

interactive, often confrontational, as

members of the group comprise

essential elements of the therapy

types of group therapy

used in prison

therapies focusing on thought processes

reality therapy

cognitive skill building

confrontational therapy (a technique)

transactional analysis

“confrontational

therapy”

• a treatment technique , usually used in a

group, that vividly brings offender face

to face with consequences of the crimes

for victim & society

group members encouraged to confront

each other’s rationalizations and

manipulations

aim: get offenders to give up

manipulative rationalizations and accept

responsibility for harms they caused

“transactional

analysis”

• treatment focusing on how a person

interacts with others, focusing on patterns that indicate personal problems focus is on roles people play; 3 ego states parent: judging and controlling adult: mature, realistic, and ethical child: playful, dependent, naughty aim: help offenders realize their problems stem from approaching world as an angry parent or weak child, rather than as a responsible adult