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The Effects of Sanction Intensity on Criminal Conduct - JDAI Helpdesk

The Effects of Sanction Intensity on Criminal Conduct - JDAI Helpdesk

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program intended to reduce the strain <strong>on</strong> the pris<strong>on</strong> system actually resulted in more<br />

incarcerati<strong>on</strong>s, as increased surveillance and drug testing raised the likelihood <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

probati<strong>on</strong> failure (Petersilia & Turner, 1993).<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>The</str<strong>on</strong>g> inability <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> ISP to dem<strong>on</strong>strate potential as a crime preventi<strong>on</strong> program under<br />

the scrutiny <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> a rigorous research design largely killed <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g>f interest in the<br />

surveillance/c<strong>on</strong>trol model <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> probati<strong>on</strong> supervisi<strong>on</strong> by the 1990s. ISP was listed in the<br />

influential University <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Maryland report to the United States C<strong>on</strong>gress, Preventing<br />

Crime: What Works, What Doesn’t, What’s Promising, as a program that did not work<br />

(Sherman et al., 1997; MacKenzie, 2006b). However, the ‘what works’ movement also<br />

led to an increased focus <strong>on</strong> the factors that influence successful programming. Andrews,<br />

B<strong>on</strong>ta, and Hoge (1990) introduced what are now comm<strong>on</strong>ly described as the ‘principles<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> effective interventi<strong>on</strong>’ (PEI), which posit that programs should be designed to be<br />

resp<strong>on</strong>sive to <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g>fenders’ specific risk and need levels (the risk-need-resp<strong>on</strong>sivity, or<br />

RNR, model: see also Taxman & Thanner, 2006). <str<strong>on</strong>g>The</str<strong>on</strong>g> risk principle in particular<br />

suggests that more intensive supervisi<strong>on</strong> and treatment should be targeted at higher-risk<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g>fenders, an idea that is str<strong>on</strong>gly supported by empirical research (see Lowenkamp,<br />

Latessa, & Holsinger, 2006, for a summary). <str<strong>on</strong>g>The</str<strong>on</strong>g> PEI suggest that ISP might be more<br />

effective if, through increased c<strong>on</strong>tact and c<strong>on</strong>trol, the probati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g>ficer were able to<br />

establish <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g>fenders’ risk and need levels and direct them into appropriate treatment.<br />

Treatment provisi<strong>on</strong> was not a priority <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the BJA/RAND-evaluated programs,<br />

and few participants received such services (Latessa et al., 1998). However, results from<br />

some <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> the study sites indicated that intensive supervisi<strong>on</strong> combined with treatment<br />

might have a positive effect <strong>on</strong> crime, which led the evaluators to call for more research<br />

6

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