Spectroscopic Studies. I.

Abstract

A meta-analysis was conducted examining the effects of prison- based treatment programs on inmates’ misconduct rates. A total of 70 studies generated 103 effect sizes in this regard. Behavioral treatment programs produced considerably larger effect size estimates (r = .26) compared to non-behavioral programs (r = .10), educational/vocational programs (r = .02), and an unspecified group of treatments (r = .02). The same result applied when effect sizes were weighted (z+). Stronger research designs were associated with a larger reduction in misconducts in the case of r but not z+ values. Yet, treatment programs that targeted more criminogenic needs and were rated higher on therapeutic integrity, generated greater the reduction in misconducts for both r and z+ estimates. Generalization effects were also found: the greater the misconduct treatment effect, the larger the reductions in recidivism (r = .44) reported for those prison programs that followed their offenders into the community. As a result, the reductions in prison misconduct carried over to the community. In conclusion, despite the fact that the studies in the database lacked a good deal of essential information, the results offer the strongest support for the policy recommendation that offering more and better treatment programs in prison is the preferred choice for maintaining safe and humane prison environments.