NCJ Number
184899
Date Published
1996
Length
14 pages
Annotation
This chapter examines the effectiveness of prison-based efforts to "scare juveniles straight."
Abstract
On November 2, 1978, an independent television station in Los Angeles presented a film documentary entitled "Scared Straight." This documentary was a partial record of an intensive confrontation session between adult inmates serving long or life sentences at New Jersey's Rahway State Prison and juveniles brought to the prison in an effort to control their involvement in delinquency. All 17 of the juveniles that appeared in the documentary were described as frequently and seriously delinquent. Three months later, according to the film, 16 had become law-abiding. This was reported to be common. Of the nearly 8,000 juveniles who attended intensive confrontation sessions at Rahway State Prison through 1978, "Scared Straight" reported that approximately 90 percent had not experienced further trouble with the law, a success rate "unequaled by traditional rehabilitation methods." This chapter shows that Rahway-type programs are grounded in the deterrence approach to the control of juvenile delinquency. Attention is then give to James O. Finckenauer's assessment of Rahway's Juvenile Awareness Project. A review of three replicative efforts to "scare juveniles straight" is then conducted. The chapter concludes that the projects examined and assessment of other prison-based programs show that intensive confrontation sessions do not deter juvenile crime. At best, such programs have no measurable effect, and at worst, they increase involvement in delinquency. 39 notes