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The Sate of Ohio is seeking to reduce crime and recidivism. In addressing this goal, policymakers have a duty to select the most effective correctional philosophy. Ultimately, this decision must be rooted in the hard facts of research evidence. Among the five approaches proposed – retribution, incapacitation, deterrence, restorative justice, and rehabilitation – only rehabilitation has shown definitive and demonstrable promise in the systematic reduction of crime. Following a specific set of programmatic principles in implementing rehabilitative treatments will allow the state to ensure effective delivery, thus guaranteeing a decline in recidivism and crime in general. Such an approach would be approved by the public.
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Crime, Policy & Rehabilitation
Allen Tuazon
Executive Summary
The Sate of Ohio is seeking to reduce crime and recidivism. In addressing this goal, policymakers have a duty to select the most effective correctional philosophy. Ultimately, this decision must be rooted in the hard facts of research evidence. Among the five approaches proposed – retribution, incapacitation, deterrence, restorative justice, and rehabilitation – only rehabilitation has shown definitive and demonstrable promise in the systematic reduction of crime. Following a specific set of programmatic principles in implementing rehabilitative treatments will allow the state to ensure effective delivery, thus guaranteeing a decline in recidivism and crime in general. Such an approach would be approved by the public.
Introduction
Escalating costs and rising prison populations are forcing the state to streamline its
correctional responses. Beyond fiscal considerations, the goal of crime reduction demands that
society choose the appropriate correctional strategy. Five prevalent organizing philosophies are
being considered: retribution; incapacitation; deterrence; restorative justice; and rehabilitation.
Only the last option, however, holds hope for reducing crime. This position paper will briefly
survey each philosophy, compare and contrast each using criminal propensity and opportunity as
a context, discuss the positive and negative aspects of each approach, focusing on research
findings, and, conclusively, describe why rehabilitation should be accepted by the state as its
primary organizational framework.
Retribution
When discussing a range of options, it is sometimes useful to begin and end with
diametrical extremes. Retribution theory, located at the far right edge of correctional philosophy,
conceives of the criminal justice system’s responsibilities as exclusively punitive – that is,
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offenders deserve only to have the exact social disruption caused by their crimes reflexively
applied to their own lives. Naturally, this perspective implicitly and wholly rejects
rehabilitation; in some sense, it also represents a reversion to a previous set of penal values
(Foucault 1977). Because retribution theory has a null view of the future, its philosophical core
is free from the opportunity/propensity dichotomy (Cullen et al. 2002, p. 30); it is justice-
centered, not offender-centered.
Considering the prevailing correctional paradigm of the modern world, it is
understandable that very little research data exists judging the effects of an exclusively
retributive system on recidivism. Some retributive policies are favored by the public (Cullen et
al. 2000, p. 10), and the goal of justice is important to corrections (Cullen & Gilbert 1982, p.
127). The philosophy of retribution, by definition, however, does not concern itself with the
reduction of future crime. As such, this philosophy, existing so far out of the reach of the
public’s and state’s goals for corrections (Cullen et al. 2002[b], p. 136; Cullen et al. 2000, p. 57),
should only be accepted – if it is accepted at all – as a secondary influence in the state’s
approach.
Incapacitation
In order for a criminal act to occur, both criminal propensity and opportunity must
intersect in history (Cullen et al. 2002, p. 30). The strategy of incapacitation focuses exclusively
on criminal opportunity: by isolating offenders from the community (in prisons, through
intensive supervision, or, at its extreme, through capital punishment), propensity becomes
essentially irrelevant. There are two schools of incapacitation: selective and collective.
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Selective incapacitation involves detaining only those criminals who are chronic re-
offenders or who have a high risk of re-offending (Visher 1987, p. 514). Studies by Wolfgang et
al. (1972) and Shannon et al. (1988) made clear that a small percentage of offenders (i.e., the
group of “career criminals”) is responsible for the majority of crimes (Walker 2006, p. 68); this
group detained, crime as a whole would decline appreciably (Visher 1987, p. 514) . While this
approach has been shown to have definite effectiveness (MacKenzie 2000, p. 464), it remains
difficult to determine which offenders are and will become career criminals. This prediction
problem (Walker 2006, p. 73; Petersilia 1993, p. 28) continues to be an obstacle that inflates
costs while depressing the potential effect size (Sherman et al. 1997, p. 9.10). Likewise,
collective incapacitation involves imprisonment of every offender based on offense-based
sentencing (e.g., mandatory minimum sentencing); as Visher (1987) notes, however, this strategy
will only “have an incapacitative effect as long as the imprisoned offenders would have been
committing crimes if they were free” (p. 515) – with only a small percentage of offenders
committing the majority of offenses, collective incapacitation is obviously inefficient and costly.
Incapacitation has been studied extensively. Despite this diversity, and despite a few
supporters (Visher 1987, Reynolds 1996), for the most part research findings have been strangely
ambiguous in every regard: prisons (Sherman 1997, p. 9.12; DiIulio & Piehl 1991, p. 35;
Spelman 2000; Petersilia 1993, p. 25-27; Lynch 1999) and intensive supervision (Martinson
1974, p. 46; Cullen et al., 1996, p. 87; Petersilia & Turner 1993, p. 332) show no discernable
effect on recidivism (Gendreau et al. 2000; Petersilia & Turner 1993).
Shockingly, imprisonment can even promote re-offending among low- and medium-risk
populations (Bonta 1996). For the majority of the American public, prison remains a
philosophical abstract; ignorance persists of the grim realities of prison life. The fact is,
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however, that prisons are terrible places. The punishment and suffering of offenders is not
limited to deprivation of liberty; convicts also are exposed to rape, brutality, and a culture of
offending that, most importantly, is instrumental in causing recidivism (Latessa 2003, p. 103).
Indeed, the phenomenon of prisonization is the most troubling of incarceration’s consequences:
the “inherently corrupting” atmosphere of each prison can utterly degrade even the best human
beings (Cullen & Gilbert 1982, p. 117-118), with interacting inmates mutually reinforcing the
very antisocial attitudes that are highly correlated to re-offending (Redl & Toch 1979, p. 190;
Van Voorhis 2004, p. 136). While incapacitation cannot be wholly rejected as a correctional
option, it would be impossible to endorse incapacitation as a primary guiding theory based on the
research evidence.
Deterrence
The philosophy of deterrence advocates creating penalties so severe that potential
criminals will consciously choose against committing crime in every circumstance; in this, it is
strongly linked to rational choice theory (Cullen et al. 2002, p. 30; Cullen et al. 2002[b], p. 279)
and to market economics (Reynolds 1996, p. 10). Each citizen has some concept of the suffering
implicit in a prison sentence; rationally, one would wish to avoid prison, a dire, “frightening,
humiliating, and demoralizing” experience (Van Voorhis 2004, p. 101) described above in the
section on Incapacitation. In the context of severe sanctions, the price of crime rises and the
benefits of offending decline, thus disqualifying criminality as a profitable mode of life and
diminishing criminal propensity (Sherman 1997, p. 9.13). The deterrent strategy includes the
tactics of incarceration, capital punishment, fines, and boot camps (shock incarceration).
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Nagin (1998) asserts that “the collective actions of the criminal justice system exert a
very substantial deterrent effect” (p. 3); this is made obvious by the fact that the majority of
individuals in society are not criminals (Walker 2006, p. 110). Yet, the issue is not the deterrent
effect of corrections at large, however, but rather of specific deterrent programs (Walker 2006, p.
110; Nagin 1998, p. 3). Unfortunately, deterrence research is methodologically challenging and
suffers from categorical gaps in knowledge (Nagin 1998). Because of the unclear and
unsatisfactory nature of this research (Lynch 1999, p. 359; Reynolds 1996, p. 26), deterrence
remains hotly contested and controversial: research evidence has only vague answers to
questions about the effectiveness of deterrence (Cullen et al. 2002[b], p. 290). While fines
appear promising, a limited corpus of research prevents a definitive evaluation (Sherman 1997,
p. 9.15); the deterrent effects of incarceration are not well attested (Gendreau et al. 2000) and
may even be lessening over time (Petersilia 1993, p. 29; Walker 2006, p. 15-16). Capital
punishment’s relationship to crime, and its deterrent power, remain in question (Walker 2006, p.
118). On shock incarceration and boot camps, researchers concur: boot camps are, in Latessa’s
(2003) dry estimation, “not positive” (p. 361), with some studies finding a highly significant
increase in recidivism for boot camp participants – at best, research in this area is inconclusive
(Sherman 1997, p. 9.16, 9.33; Walker 2006, p. 233; Cullen et al. 1996, p. 110-112; MacKenzie
2000, p. 466).
Beyond the general effected noted by Nagin (1998), research has not confirmed which
sanctions exert a deterrent effect. In conclusion, because of the unconvincing nature of the
research evidence, deterrence can only serve as a secondary guiding principle for the state
correctional system.
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Restorative Justice
Restorative Justice is a relatively new movement within criminology which, like
retribution theory, has a justice-centered – versus an offender-centered – view of corrections and
the correctional process. Yet, though some view the Restorative Justice movement as
progressive, its theoretical elements have been present in society since prehistoric times. Walker
(2006) points out that similar practices have been used in Native American and indigenous
cultures, as well as in colonial America (p. 313; Cullen & Gilbert 1982, p. 47, 49).
Because of its novelty, there is only a minimal base of evidence on which to judge
restorative justice’s potential as a correctional approach. While attractive on many different
levels (Levrant et al. 1999, p. 4; Cullen et al. 2000, p. 47), the theory seems overburdened by a
histrionic, agrarian vision of what justice is – and, at times, description of the restorative course
degenerates into scenes worthy of late-afternoon television (cf. “Imagine Two Robbers,”
Braithwaite 1998, p. 326-328). Beyond this, evidence-based corrections emphasizes the
treatment of specific, proven crimogenic factors such as antisocial attitudes and associates (Van
Voorhis 2004, p. 136; Smith et al. 2004, p. 287-288); these considerations notwithstanding,
restorative justice targets such abstract concepts as dignity, sense of empowerment, and harmony
(Braithwaite 1998, p. 328). Some may view such an approach as, in a partial sense,
“correctional quackery” (Latessa et al. 2002, p. 43). Ultimately, while restorative justice may
succeed at promoting pleasant feelings and mutual satisfaction (Braithwaite 2002), definitive
analysis in terms of recidivism is forthcoming – currently, evidence is ambiguous at best
(Braithwaite 2002, p. 56; Latessa 2003, p. 268-269), and feelings are not overly positive (Levrant
et al. 1999; Walker 2006, p. 312). Until such time as more evidence becomes available,
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Restorative Justice should be maintained only as a secondary influence in guiding state
correctional policy.
Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation is treatment, often referred to as an “intervention,” which seeks to change
the offender’s personality, psyche, or characteristics in order to prevent him from engaging in
future criminal behavior (Sherman 1997, p. 9.1). In this sense, rehabilitation focuses on criminal
propensity. The history of rehabilitation is a long and fruitful one (Wines 1870, p. 541; Foucault
1977; Cullen & Gilbert 1982, p. 51), and exists in concord with the spiritual bedrock of the
American mentality (Cullen et al. 2002[b], p. 140-141). Over each ensuing decade, the concept
of rehabilitation has been refined; now, in its current state, enough research has been conducted
to demonstrate with certainty that rehabilitation holds great promise for the reduction of crime.
Ironically, most discussions of rehabilitation begin with the famous “nothing works”
requiem. Though rehabilitation existed at the forefront of correctional efforts during the late 19th
and early 20th centuries (Cullen & Gendreau 2000, p. 114; Latessa 2003, p. 24-28), soaring crime
rates and social upheaval in the 1960s and 1970s (Cullen & Gilbert 1982, p. 93-94; Cullen &
Gendreau 2000, p. 122) united in a uniform rejection of rehabilitation whose flower was (or
seemed to be) the contentious Martinson Report of 1974. For many criminologists, this was the
authoritative death-knell of rehabilitation as a valid correctional strategy (Cullen & Gendreau
2000, p. 120). Its definitive finding has been quoted in almost every academic paper on the
subject: “with few and isolated exceptions, the rehabilitative efforts that have been reported so
far have had no appreciable effect on rehabilitation” (Martinson 1974, p. 54). Unfortunately, this
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widely-cited sentence has been, in most circumstances, misinterpreted, misrepresented, and
poorly applied (Walker 2006, p. 219). Furthermore, Martinson himself retreated from this
position (1979) five years after his initial finding: “on the basis of the evidence in our current
study, I withdraw [the previous ‘nothing works’] conclusion. I have often said that treatment
added to the networks of criminal justice is ‘impotent’ … the conclusion is not correct” (p. 254).
Though opinions remain somewhat entrenched, evidence and research demonstrate that
rehabilitation can be effective in reducing recidivism (Latessa 2003, p. 508-509).
The research corpus is tremendous: in 2004, as noted by Smith (et al.), more than thirty
meta-analyses synthesized the research findings of approximately 1,000 studies (p. 286). In the
majority of cases (64%; see also Sherman 1997, p. 9.19), the average reduction in recidivism is
10 percent (Smith et al. 2004, p. 286). This effect size is corroborated by several analyses, even
analyses completed by scholars hostile to rehabilitation in general (Cullen 2000, p. 263; Cullen
& Gendreau 2000, p. 137; Whitehead & Lab 1989; Latessa 2003, p. 509; Andrews et al. 1990).
Even more exciting is the prospect that appropriate interventions – that is, programs that share
certain programmatic features – can reduce recidivism by “approximately 25 to 30 percent”
(Smith et al. 2004, p. 286; Andrews & Bonta 2003). In short, the evidence shows that
rehabilitation can and does work. It is the only one of the five organizational philosophies whose
evidential and research base leads to an unchallengeable positive conclusion. This assertion is
constrained, however: only certain types of rehabilitation work, and only when implemented in
certain circumstances (Martinson 1979). But how is the state to ensure that rehabilitation
remains vital and does not descend into what Latessa (2002) refers to as “quackery” (p. 43)?
An endorsement of the rehabilitative strategy does not mean a blanket acceptance of each
internal tactic. First, in order to ensure success, rehabilitative programs that do not work must be
9
discontinued outright. Thankfully, research has revealed which rehabilitative theories,
treatments and approaches do not effectively reduce recidivism: these include acupuncture, self-
esteem therapy, talking cures, bibiliotherapy, healing lodges, diapers treatment, drama therapy,
and the diet and haircut approach (Latessa 2003, p. 510-511; Latessa 2002, p. 44; Smith et al.
2004, p. 288-289). Though these tactics appear absurd to the rational eye, the truth remains,
unfortunately, that practices like these pervade correctional culture and are accepted on shaky
logic with no appeal to evidence or methods (Latessa 2002, p. 43). Furthermore, diversion and
boot camps are also sometimes included within the rehabilitation framework (Walker 2006, p.
224, 232); yet, their effects, according to research, are negative to ambiguous. To free resources
for the pursuit of proper and appropriate interventions, these dysfunctional notions must be
rejected.
Secondly, rehabilitative treatments should adhere to the principles of effective
intervention. These principles encompass every aspect of treatment, and together form a very
precise portrait of the ideal rehabilitative effort: first, interventions should target the known
predictors of crime and recidivism; second, a cognitive-behavioral approach should be used;
third, higher risk offenders should receive the primary force of treatment (Latessa 2003, p. 510-
511; Cullen & Gendreau 2000, p. 145-147; Gendreau 1996; Lipsey 1999, p. 157; Van Voorhis
2004, p. 183). In addition, the organizational culture of program management must emphasize
ethics, goals, efficiency, integrity, credibility, and self-evaluation, and must transfer these
attitudes to service delivery as well (Latessa et al. 2002, p. 45; Andrews 1995). As Latessa
(2003) points out, “[rehabilitative] programs that meet the above principles are more effective
than those that do not” (p. 513). Treatment of offenders can be difficult, especially with the roots
of delinquency extending into childhood and even early development (Farrington 1994; Loeber
10
et al. 2003); because of this, efficiently constructed, targeted, and implemented programs are
indispensable.
Finally, public support of rehabilitation must be considered. In previous years, support of
rehabilitation seemed politically untenable, with the War on Crime demanding tougher and
tougher responses to offenders (Walker 2006). The fact remains, however, that most Americans
living in the twentieth century expect rehabilitation to be a part of – if not the primary goal of –
corrections (Cullen et al. 2000, p. 59; Cullen 2000, p. 287; Cullen et al. 2002[b], p. 135). Most
importantly, Americans expect results: a reduction in crime regardless of the approach; the
public is attracted to “what works” (Cullen et al. 2002[b], p. 141). Rehabilitative efforts
constrained by the principles of effective correctional intervention have been shown to be
extremely effective. In this context, public approval is sure to follow the proper implementation
of appropriate rehabilitative interventions.
Conclusion
Research on incapacitation and deterrence has shown both approaches to be ineffective in
reducing crime; similarly, not enough research exists to approve of retribution or restorative
justice. In contrast, a review of the evidence reveals rehabilitation to be a viable and highly
effective approach to crime reduction. Rehabilitation is also highly supported by the public,
especially if yields results. Recognizing these facts, it is clear that rehabilitation, manifesting
properly implemented and appropriate treatments, should be the guiding philosophy of the State
of Ohio in the future.
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