NCJ Number
218327
Journal
Journal of Offender Rehabilitation Volume: 43 Issue: 3 Dated: 2006 Pages: 73-83
Date Published
2006
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This paper presents an overview of offender reintegration policies in Australia and New Zealand.
Abstract
Although offender rehabilitation programs are firmly established in correctional settings in both Australia and New Zealand, increasing numbers of people are being imprisoned in both countries and for longer time periods. Despite the increase in the number of rehabilitation programs available to meet the needs of a growing prison population, few have been rigorously evaluated. The overrepresentation of offenders from Indigenous cultural backgrounds has led to the questioning of the appropriateness of mainstream programs that are not tailored to the distinctive needs of offenders conditioned by Indigenous cultural values and disadvantages. There is not enough empirical evidence to draw conclusions about "what works" for these groups of offenders. In recent years, Australasian researchers have developed their own ideas about the change process, particularly through the development of the "Good Lives Model" (GLM), as well as through research on the rehabilitation of Indigenous offenders and the assessment of treatment readiness. The GLM is a strength-based theory of rehabilitation that endorses the view that offenders have the same needs and aspirations as law-abiding citizens. The GLM focuses on two core therapeutic goals: to promote positive values and reduce the risk for offending. This inevitably leads to a focus on the management of problems encountered in reintegration into the community and how one changes attitudes and behaviors in order to develop a satisfying and law-abiding lifestyle. For indigenous offenders, this involves keying treatment and supervision to the values that have priority within their cultures and how they can be adapted to mainstream society. Australasian work on treatment readiness has identified a number of individual differences and contextual factors that influence engagement with treatment and commitment to change. 29 references