Corrections_Today_November_December_2021_Vol.83_No.6

NIJ Update

and modeling. 3 Therefore, rehabilita- tion programs are designed to reduce criminal behaviors through the posi- tive reinforcement of conventional behaviors learned through observation or modeling. 4 For example, a program may help a participant learn how to manage his or her anger by modeling appropriate responses instead. Treatment in secure corrections for serious juvenile offenders (2015) This practice includes interven- tions targeting serious (violent and chronic) juveniles sentenced to serve time in secure corrections. The overall goal is to decrease recidivism rates when juveniles are released and return to the community. The practice is rated Effective for reducing general recidivism and serious recidivism of violent and chronic justice-involved youth. Evidence Rating for Outcomes —An Effective rating was assigned to two outcomes for this practice: –– Crime & Delinquency — Mul- tiple crime/offense types. To determine the impact of treat- ment on general recidivism rates, researchers examined 30 comparisons, between treatment groups and control groups, which used intent-to-treat data. The authors found a significant odds ratio of 1.307 in favor of the treatment group, meaning chronic and violent justice- involved youth who received treatment in secure corrections had lower recidivism rates than comparison group juveniles who did not receive treatment. –– Crime & Delinquency — Serious recidivism. Researchers exam- ined 15 comparisons, looking

cognitive–behavioral, cognitive, education and nonbehavioral. Conclusion We created CrimeSolutions to help criminal justice, juvenile justice and crime victim service profes- sionals better understand crime and identify program and practice solu- tions that address the unique needs of their communities. CrimeSolutions helps justice professionals who are not social scientists improve the effective- ness of programs. The systematic, independent review process and evidence ratings are intended to give practitioners access to social science evidence that is otherwise difficult to obtain, and serve as a basis for gauging the quality of evidence. In short, CrimeSolutions strives to help practitioners answer the questions: has it worked, and in what context? EndNotes 1 In 2016, nearly 2.3 million research articles were published, according to the National Science Foundation, Science & Engineering Indicators 2018 , National Science Foundation. https://www. nsf.gov/statistics/2018/nsb20181 (December 2018). 2 Mark Lipsey and Francis Cullen, “The Effectiveness of Correctional Rehabilitation: A Review of Systematic Reviews,” Annual Review of Law and Social Science 3 no. 1 (2007):297–320. 3 Alfred Bandura, “Self-Efficacy: Toward a Unifying Theory of Behavioral Change,” Psychological Review 84 no. 2 (1977):191–215. 4 Mark Lipsey and Francis Cullen, “The Effectiveness of Correctional Rehabilitation: A Review of Systematic Reviews,” Annual Review of Law and Social Science 3 no. 1 (2007):297–320. About the National Institute of Justice: The National Institute of Justice is the scientific research, development, and evaluation arm of the U.S. Department of Justice. The National Institute of Justice has run the CrimeSolutions program since 2013.

at serious recidivism (which included reincarceration or reinstitutionalization) of justice- involved youth. The authors calculated a significant odds ratio of 1.354, meaning the treatment provided in secure confinement significantly reduced the serious recidivism of chronic and violent justice-involved youth. Practice Goals/Target Popu- lation — Interventions targeting serious (violent and chronic) justice- involved youth sentenced to serve time in secure corrections aim to decrease recidivism rates when ju- veniles are released and return to the community. These interventions can include psychological approaches, social and educational methods and environmental conditions, all of which support the learning of proso- cial attitudes and behaviors. A juvenile is generally defined as a young person aged 12 to 21 years old. This practice targets juveniles who commit violent offenses or chronically offend. Violent justice- involved youth are juveniles who have committed offenses in which someone has been hurt or seriously injured and requires medical at- tention. Violent offenses include murder, voluntary manslaughter, kidnapping, assault, robbery, endan- germent and arson. Youth chronically involved in the juvenile justice sys- tem are those who have three or more previous legal adjudications. Practice Components — There are a number of different types of treatment that may be avail- able to justice-involved youth in secure corrections. The treat- ment types include behavioral,

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