NCJ Number
171539
Date Published
1995
Length
0 pages
Annotation
This audio cassette contains presentations by three researchers regarding their evaluations of boot camp programs.
Abstract
The first report focuses on a survey of boot camp programs to determine the characteristics of their substance abuse treatment programs and aftercare components. Most of the drug treatment programs in the boot camps surveyed consisted of drug education, group counseling, and the Alcoholics Anonymous 12-step intervention. Individual counseling and the therapeutic-community approach were rarely used. Contracting with those who specialize in substance abuse treatment proved to be more satisfactory than training existing corrections staff for such work. Boot camp aftercare efforts ranged from traditional probation/parole services to intensive and comprehensive services. Differences among programs consisted of the intensity and comprehensiveness of aftercare services. The presenter notes that the programs were apparently more interested in administrative concerns than treatment effectiveness. Further, the client-staff ratio appeared to be a significant factor in program effectiveness. The second presentation concerns an evaluation of the implementation of boot camp demonstration programs in Cleveland, Mobile, and Denver. Topics covered include the characteristics of selected participants and program components. The third presentation focuses on a multisite study of boot camps. The common goals of the camps were to reduce prison crowding and reduce recidivism. The evaluation generally found that these goals were not achieved by the boot camp programs. The presenter advises that views of boot camps among criminal justice professionals range from making the best of a popular program whose effectiveness has yet to be proven to favoring abolishing the concept as an inappropriate and ineffective corrections strategy.