NCJ Number
55328
Journal
CANADIAN JOURNAL OF CRIMINOLOGY AND CORRECTIONS Volume: 19 Issue: 3 Dated: (JULY 1977) Pages: 292-302
Date Published
1977
Length
11 pages
Annotation
INMATES OF A CANADIAN FEDERAL PENITENTIARY WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EXPERIMENTAL AND CONTROL GROUPS TO EVALUATE SELF-CONCEPT AND PERSONAL ORIENTATION, ATTITUDES TOWARD LIFE, AND PERSONALITY CHANGES RELATED TO LIFE SKILLS.
Abstract
LIFE SKILLS TRAINING SEEKS TO DEVELOP INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION, PROBLEM SOLVING ABILITIES, AND AWARENESS OF PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY AND DELIBERATE CHOICE IN AREAS OF FAMILY COMMUNITY RELATIONS, LEISURE TIME, AND VOCATIONAL PLANNING. OF 73 INMATE VOLUNTEERS, 48 WERE SELECTED TO EVALUATE THE IMPACT OF LIFE SKILLS TRAINING. DEMOGRAPHIC DATA WERE OBTAINED FROM THE FILES OF INMATES ON 18 VARIABLES. THE FIVE VARIABLES WHICH SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENTIATED EXPERIMENTAL AND CONTROL GROUPS WERE AGE, INTELLIGENCE, NUMBER OF PRIOR CONVICTIONS, NUMBER OF PRIOR PENITENTIARY ADMISSIONS, AND EMPLOYMENT AT TIME OF ARREST. THE STUDY DESIGN INCORPORATED PREASSESSMENT, TRAINING, AND POSTASSESSMENT FOR BOTH GROUPS. SESSIONS FOR EACH GROUP, LIFE SKILLS TRAINING FOR THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP AND CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES FOR THE CONTROL GROUP, WERE HELD DAILY FOR 3 HOURS, 5 DAYS A WEEK FOR 12 WEEKS. INSTRUMENTS USED TO EVALUATE PARTICIPANT RESPONSES WERE A LIFE SKILLS EVALUATION QUESTIONNAIRE, PURPOSE-IN-LIFE TEST, LIFE AREAS SURVEY, INTERNAL-EXTERNAL LOCUS OF CONTROL SCALE, AND THE EDWARDS PERSONALITY INVENTORY. OVERALL REACTIONS TO LIFE SKILLS TRAINING WERE FAVORABLE. IN GENERAL, PARTICIPANTS REPORTED THAT TRAINING INCREASED THEIR AWARENESS OF PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PROBLEMS, ENABLED A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF THE VIEWS OF OTHERS, AND IMPROVED COMMUNICATION SKILLS. MOST PARTICIPANTS FELT BETTER PREPARED TO HANDLE DAILY PROBLEMS OF LIFE, CITING INCREASED SELF-AWARENESS, GREAT PROBLEM SOLVING CAPABILITY, AND BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF PEOPLE AS A BASIS FOR THEIR FEELINGS. SELF WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT LIFE SKILLS AREA, FOLLOWED BY FAMILY, JOB, COMMUNITY, AND LEISURE TIME. MOST INMATES FELT THAT JUST BEFORE PAROLE WAS THE RIGHT TIME TO RECEIVE TRAINING. THE EVALUATION DEMONSTRATES THAT LIFE SKILLS TRAINING CAN ENHANCE FEELINGS OF SELF-WORTH AND FACILITATE A SHIFT FROM EXTERNAL TO INTERNAL ORIENTATION, CAN EFFECTIVELY INFLUENCE THE DEVELOPMENT OF POSITIVE ATTITUDES TOWARD LIFE (PARTICULARLY TOWARD SELF AND FAMILY), CAN PROMOTE A MORE REALISTIC PERCEPTION OF AND BEHAVIOR TOWARD SIGNIFICANT OTHERS, AND CAN INFLUENCE CHANGE IN SOME PERSONALITY TRAITS. FURTHER EXPERIMENTATION WITH LIFE SKILLS TRAINING IN THE RESOCIALIZATION OF INMATES IS RECOMMENDED. QUESTIONS OF KEY INTEREST CONCERN THE EXTENT TO WHICH PRISONER INPUT AUGMENTS LIFE SKILLS TRAINING AND HOW DIFFERENCES IN PROGRAM CONTENT AND STRUCTURE CAN BE DESIGNED TO ENHANCE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT AND REDUCE RECIDIVISM. SUPPORTING DATA ARE TABULATED, AND REFERENCES ARE CITED. (DEP)