NCJ Number
19553
Journal
SEMINARS IN PSYCHIATRY Volume: 3 Issue: 3 Dated: (AUGUST 1971) Pages: 363-375
Date Published
1971
Length
13 pages
Annotation
RESULTS OF A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF 115 INMATES INVOLVED IN PSYCHOTHERAPY AND 138 NON-THERAPY INMATES TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF PSYCHOTHERAPY ON RECIDIVISM AND THE FACTORS INFLUENCING PSYCHOTHERAPY SUCCESS.
Abstract
THE MAJOR QUESTIONS INVESTIGATED IN THIS PAPER WERE: (1) DOES THE PSYCHOTHERAPY PROGRAM IN GENERAL HAVE A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT IN REDUCING RECIDIVISM? (2) WITH WHAT TYPES OF INMATES IS PSYCHOTHERAPY MOST EFFECTIVE? CONVERSELY, WITH WHAT TYPES DOES IT SEEM TO HAVE NO EFFECT, OR PERHAPS A NEGATIVE EFFECT? (3) DOES THE LENGTH OF TIME IN PSYCHOTHERAPY AFFECT THE RECIDIVISM RATE? (4) WHAT TYPE OF PSYCHOTHERAPY (INDIVIDUAL, GROUP, OR COMBINATION OF BOTH) SEEMS TO BE MOST EFFECTIVE WITH THE VARIOUS TYPES OF INMATES? (5) IS THE DECISION TO VOLUNTEER FOR THE PSYCHOTHERAPY PROGRAM--THE MOTIVATIONAL FACTOR--IN ITSELF RELATED TO A REDUCTION OF RECIDIVISM? THE BASIC ANALYTICAL TECHNIQUE WAS TO DERIVE THE EXPECTED RECIDIVISM RATE OF THE THERAPY SAMPLE AND COMPARE IT WITH THE ACTUAL RETURN RATE. ANOTHER TECHNIQUE WAS TO HOLD CERTAIN KEY FACTORS CONSTAND AND TO COMPARE THE RECIDIVISM RATES OF THERAPY AND NONTHERAPY SUBJECTS. IN THIS STUDY IT WAS FOUND THAT PARTICIPATION BY PRISON INMATES IN A PSYCHOTHERAPY PROGRAM WAS ASSOCIATED WITH A SIGNIFICANT SUBSEQUENT REDUCTION IN RECIDIVISM. IT NOW SEEMS CLEAR THAT THIS REDUCTION IN RECIDIVISM WAS DUE, IN PART, TO THE DECISION TO VOLUNTEER FOR THERAPY, I.E., THE MOTIVATIONAL FACTOR, AND, IN PART, TO THE IMPACT OF PSYCHOTHERAPY ITSELF. HOWEVER, PSYCHOTHERAPY WAS FOUND TO HAVE QUITE A DIFFERENT IMPACT ON RECIDIVISM, DEPENDING ON THE TYPE OF INMATE INVOLVED. THE CRUCIAL FACTORS IN SPOTLIGHTING THOSE WHO APPEARED TO BE PARTICULARLY APPROPRIATE, AS WELL AS THOSE WHO APPEARED TO BE PARTICULARLY INAPPROPRIATE, FOR PSYCHOTHERAPY WERE CRIMINAL RECORD AND AGE. INMATES WITH SHORTER RECORDS WERE FOUND TO BENEFIT MOST SIGNIFICANTLY FROM PSYCHOTHERAPY. OLDER INMATES WITH LONGER RECORDS ALSO TENDED TO BENEFIT CONSIDERABLY FROM THEIR INVOLVEMENT IN THE THERAPY PROGRAM. IT WAS FURTHER DISCOVERED THAT THE LONGER THESE TYPES OF INMATES REMAINED IN A TREATMENT RELATIONSHIP, THE LOWER WAS THEIR RECIDIVISM RATE. ON THE OTHER HAND, YOUNGER INMATES WITH LONGER RECORDS DID NOT SEEM TO BENEFIT FROM PSYCHOTHERAPY. IN FACT THE LONGER THIS TYPE OF INMATE WAS INVOLVED IN THERAPY, THE HIGHER WAS THE RECIDIVISM RATE. THE STUDY SUGGESTED THAT FOR LONG-TERM TREATMENT GROUP THERAPY WAS MORE EFFECTIVE, WHILE FOR SHORT-TERM TREATMENT INDIVIDUAL THERAPY TENDED TO HAVE MORE OF AN IMPACT. THE FINDINGS DID NOT INDICATE THAT A PARTICULAR MODE OF PSYCHOTHERAPY (INDIVIDUAL, GROUP, OR THE COMBINATION OF BOTH) WAS MORE OR LESS EFFECTIVE WITH A PARTICULAR TYPE OF INMATE. IT WAS FOUND THAT OF THOSE WHO DID BECOME RECIDIVISTS, THE THERAPY SAMPLE TENDED TO BE REINCARCERATED FOR LESS SERIOUS KINDS OF BEHAVIOR AND TO REMAIN OUT IN THE COMMUNITY SIGNIFICANTLY LONGER BEFORE REINCARCERATION, WHEN COMPARED TO NONTHERAPY COUNTERPARTS. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED)