NCJ Number
58617
Date Published
1978
Length
33 pages
Annotation
METHODOLOGY AND RESULTS ARE REPORTED FROM AN EVALUATION OF ATTITUDE CHANGE IN A SAMPLE OF JUVENILES INVOLVED IN A 'SHOCK CONFRONTATION' TREATMENT MODALITY PROVIDED BY AN INMATE PROGRAM IN NEW JERSEY'S RAHWAY STATE PRISON.
Abstract
THE LIFERS' JUVENILE AWARENESS PROJECT AT RAHWAY STATE PRISON IS A PROJECT DESIGNED AND OPERATED BY INMATES WITH THE INTENTION OF CONFRONTING AT-RISK JUVENILES WITH THE HARSH REALITIES OF PRISON LIFE AND THE CONSEQUENCES OF CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR. SELECTED JUVENILES ARE BROUGHT INSIDE THE PRISON FOR A TWO-TO THREE-HOUR CONFRONTATION WITH THE INMATES OPERATING THE PROJECT. A TOTAL OF 46 EXPERIMENTALS AND 35 CONTROLS WERE PREAND POST-TESTED REGARDING NINE ATTITUDES WHICH CAN BE GROUPED INTO FOUR CATEGORIES OF CRIME/DETERRENCE, PRISON/PUNISHMENT, LAW/JUSTICE/POLICEMAN, AND SELF-PERCEPTION. INSTRUMENTS USED WERE THE ATTITUDE TOWARD PUNISHMENT OF CRIMINALS (WANG AND THURSTONE), SEMANTIC DIFFERENTIAL SCALES, ATTITUDE TOWARD OBEYING THE LAW TEST, AND GLUECK'S SOCIAL PREDICTION TABLE. RESULTS FROM THE ATTITUDE CHANGE COMPONENT OF THE EVALUATION, WHILE SOMEWHAT MIXED, SHOW NO CONSISTENT AND SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN PRE-AND POST-ATTITUDE TESTING OF THE SUBJECTS. ARGUING THAT ATTTITUDE CHANGE IS AN INTERVENING LINK TO BEHAVIOR CHANGE, IT IS CONCLUDED THAT, ON THE BASIS OF THESE FINDINGS, THE PROGRAM IS TOO SIMPLISTIC AND UNREALISTIC TO COUNTER THE COMPLEX FACTORS AND PREDISPOSING ATTITUDES CONSISTENT WITH MOST THEORIES OF DELINQUENCY CAUSATION. IT IS CAUTIONED, HOWEVER, THAT MORE EVIDENCE NEEDS TO BE COLLECTED TO SUBSTANTIATE THIS CONCLUSION. TABULAR EVALUATION DATA ARE PROVIDED. (RCB)