NCJ Number
85767
Date Published
1981
Length
113 pages
Annotation
This study describes a program for drug and alcohol abusers in Georgia correctional institutions and reports on a process and impact evaluation.
Abstract
The program combined an inhouse structured living environment with an eclectic approach to therapy. The three phases of the program were orientation, problem identification and confrontation, and preparation of postrelease plans. The basic program philosophy viewed drug and alcohol abuse not as the major problem but rather the individual's inability to cope with other sociological, psychological, and environmental problems. Following the presentation of a brief history of the program, this report describes the methodology used for data collection and analysis. Program components common to each of the four institutions in which programs operated are then presented, followed by a description of the central office administrative involvement in the program's development and in the monitoring of the program's progress. The four treatment communities are then reviewed, with differences between them highlighted. The strengths and weaknesses of each program are identified. The most powerful effect of the program came from involvement in the structured 24-hour peer-supported residential units. The comments of participants indicated that a sense of belonging and caring for other members of the unit developed. The therapeutic community appears to be workable for not only substance abusers but for other subpopulations within the prison system. Among the 15 recommendations are proposals for expansion of the therapeutic communities to additional correctional institutions, the development of a guideline manual based upon the experiences of the four programs, and the assignment of a core of selected security staff permanently to each of the inhouse communities. Evaluation instruments and staff job descriptions are appended, and 14 references are provided.