NCJ Number
187687
Journal
Corrections Management Quarterly Volume: 5 Issue: 1 Dated: Winter 2001 Pages: 37-46
Date Published
2001
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This article argues that correctional facilities should devote substantial financial and other resources to treating gang affiliated offenders in correctional settings.
Abstract
Gang members within correctional facilities pose significant challenges for institutional treatment staffs. Whether former members of street gangs or recent converts to security threat groups within a facility, these inmates often have histories of physical and sexual abuse, substance abuse, psychiatric disturbances, post-traumatic stress disorder, cognitive deficits, poor self-esteem, and other problems. Despite the fact that many of these offenders are extremely difficult to treat, the article urges correctional facilities to attempt to offer appropriate treatment for those who are open to such interventions. Further, in treating gang members, institutional staffs should consider their assets, including family and community, in facilitating long-term change. There are a number of promising treatment programs available for confined gang members. The article states that it intentionally did not focus on certain forms of psychological treatment such as individual psychotherapy, which, while widely used, tends to be eclectic and thus difficult to document. References