Laurie Chassin focuses on the elevated prevalence of substance use disorders among young offenders in the juvenile justice system and on efforts by the justice system to provide treatment for these disorders. She emphasizes the importance of diagnosing and treating these disorders, which are linked both with continued offending and with a broad…

Violence is a widespread phenomenon in juvenile street culture. But the questions of whether this relationship is a deterministic one, and if not, which are the contributing factors, are largely unanswered. This article focuses on the role of public space, starting with a comparison of the meaning of deviant behavior and crime in street culture in…

There is some debate about whether or not sex offenders are similar to non-sex offenders with regard to family background (parental characteristics), personality, and psychopathology. The central aim of this study focused on the comparison of juvenile sex offenders and non-sex offenders. The sample consisted of incarcerated juvenile male sex (n =…

The purpose of this study was to document the effectiveness of a small pilot program designed to address the academic, psychosocial, and adaptive needs of juvenile offenders with substance abuse diagnoses. This research measured functionally defined outcomes and examined disparities between students who achieved success and those who did not.…

Prison education in Europe is based on an adult education model. This is clearly stated in the Council of Europe Recommendations on Education in Prison (1990). It states that "the education of prisoners must, in its philosophy, methods and content, be brought as close as possible to the best adult education in the society outside (COE, 1990:…

This research highlights the learning of female offenders on a 20-day tailor-made experiential adventure education course (Women in Action) delivered by Outward Bound New Zealand. The aims of the course were to increase self-awareness, to develop an understanding of the concept of choice and self responsibility, to improve communication skills and…

The relatively high imprisonment rates of African American men from poor neighborhoods raise a question of whether felony sentences are influenced by ecological factors, separately from or in conjunction with a defendant's race. To provide insight on the topic, both legal and extralegal effects on imprisonment and sentence length were modeled for…

Research on women's experiences of interpersonal violence has grown dramatically and, as a result, the ethical issues surrounding this research are a concern. Although regulatory procedures ensure that research participants are protected from undue risk, little is known about the impact of victimization research on participants. In this study, the…

The purpose of this study was to measure whether Christian programs had a positive influence on the academic achievement of low-literate male inmates. The sample consisted of 124 male inmates in a closed security prison in the southeastern United States who were participating in an Adult Basic Education (ABE) program. The researcher grouped the…

Four samples were used to evaluate the incremental validity of the Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking Styles (PICTS) General Criminal Thinking (GCT) score and Proactive (P) and Reactive (R) composite scales vis-a-vis response style in predicting disciplinary adjustment and recidivism. Purified Confusion (Cf[subscript p]) and…

This book is a personal account of 8 years of teaching in Texas jails and prisons. It recounts numerous anecdotes of life in prison and the experience of teaching prisoners, most of whom had very low literacy skills. It describes the prison culture and what inmates must do to survive in it. The book details the methods that have worked in reaching…

Unfavorable world and national economic and social trends of recent years have been paralleled by a reduced commitment to social services for marginalized peoples, including educational programs for women inmates. The potential negative results for future levels of delinquency and crime cannot be precisely calculated, according to sociologists and…

This report to the legislature on educational programs in Wisconsin's adult correctional institutions contains four parts. Part 1, key provisions of legislation, describes assembly bill 422 (relating to creating a council on educational programs in the department of corrections, establishing objectives for educational programs, and providing for a…

Site-visit reports for 12 correctional facilities libraries are summarized using the headings of the Policy Directive for Institutional Library Services, and centering only on the general libraries. Libraries studied are categorized as either adequate, minimum but functional, or inadequate. Observations and specific recommendations are presented…

The model presented in this article is intended to assist correctional counselors and others in facilitating communication among prison guards of a different race from inmates and, further, to illustrate how to train guards in the fundamentals of developing a helping relationship with inmates. (Author)