NCJ Number
143307
Date Published
1992
Length
52 pages
Annotation
Project About Face is a joint effort by several Tennessee organizations to implement a juvenile education and training program that is correctional in nature and reduces juvenile recidivism.
Abstract
To date, 233 male juvenile offenders have entered the program. Participants spent 8 weeks during the residential phase involved in structured daily living, counseling, and academics. Participants attend counseling groups during 6 months of aftercare. All participants take the Stanford Achievement Test at the beginning and end of the program's residential phase; physical conditioning is assessed at the same intervals. Participants are also administered the Life Purpose Questionnaire, the Short Sensation-Seeking Scale, the MacAndrew Test, and the Defining Issues Test. Test results indicate that educational and physical variables increased significantly with Project About Face. The at-risk level for addiction significantly increased and then significantly decreased. Approval-seeking behavior consistently decreased, while law and order significantly increased and then slightly decreased. Authoritarianism somewhat decreased and then significantly increased. The validity of participant responses to the Defining Issues Test substantially decreased and then slightly increased. Approximately 75 percent of all participants satisfactorily completed the project. The short-term recidivism rate for participants who had been out of the program for 6 months was 20.5 percent. When participants did reoffend, they were charged with less severe offenses than they were prior to the project. Recommendations for further assessment of project effectiveness and juvenile recidivism are offered. Appendixes contain additional information on the project evaluation. 7 references, 4 tables, and 9 figures