NCJ Number
132843
Journal
Crime and Delinquency Volume: 36 Issue: 1 Dated: (January 1990) Pages: 87-111
Date Published
1990
Length
25 pages
Annotation
Six-month outcomes of a randomized experiment testing the effects of Intensive Supervision Programs (ISPs) in three California counties were used to establish how participation in an ISP affected the subsequent behavior of offenders.
Abstract
The findings indicated that ISP officers were able to intensify the monitoring of ISP offenders, but were less able to increase services including counseling and employment assistance to clients. In two sites, offenders on ISP were significantly more likely to incur technical violations than their counterparts on regular probation, but not more likely to be rearrested or reincarcerated. In the third location, in which the control program was a different type of ISP, there were no differences on any outcome measure. But before the effectiveness of ISP can be judged fairly, several considerations must be addressed. The first question is whether technical violations really do proxy criminal behavior. Researchers need to clarify the effects of personal traits and of ISP conditions on the successful ISP participant. Finally, the issue of adequate drug treatment and monitoring must be confronted. 5 figures, 9 notes, and 9 references (Author abstract modified)