| Popis: |
Three decades of literature reviews, meta-analyses, and program evaluations have shown that correctional rehabilitation can work. The most effective treatment approaches and techniques in correctional rehabilitation have been assembled into what is called the “Principles of Effective Intervention” (Andrews et al., 1990; Gendreau, 1996; Andrews & Bonta, 2003). Since there is indication that programs that follow the Principles of Effective Intervention are not as effective with non-Whites as they are with Whites (Van Voorhis et al., 2002; Robinson, 1995), this work asks whether racial responsivity should be considered an element of effective correctional treatment. This work is an extension of Van Voorhis and colleagues’ (2002) Georgia Cognitive Skills Experiment, which found a significant reduction in recidivism for White but not African American parolees after participation in a correctional treatment program. The present study used an experimental design to assign 937 male parolees to a treatment group that received the Reasoning & Rehabilitation program or to a control group that did not receive the program. Two-way and three-way interactions were analyzed using discrete-time event history analysis. Personality, employment status at incarceration, the gender of the parole officer, adherence to program integrity, and assessed relevance of the treatment program were found to explain why the program was effective for Whites but not for African Americans. These findings supported the main argument in this work: Racial responsivity is an important facet of the Responsivity Principle. Since African American offenders continue to be disproportionately represented in correctional populations (Harrison & Beck, 2003), these findings support for the need for more research in the area of racial responsivity. |
