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This paper considers the African communal ethic of Ubuntu as it is understood in the South African context. Its background and context and the various interpretations of this lived ethic in society and academia will be explored. According to Ubuntu, what is good is constituted by how one relates to others (affirming others, empathising, etc.). It is not an ethic that is purely governed by laws and the outcomes of actions. This paper considers the detrimental effect of gangsterism on prisoners' personal and social development in South African prisons and illustrates how the solidarity and identity of prisoners is merely an illusion that misguidedly resembles communal harmony or Ubuntu. Specifically, after pointing out how indigenous values in South Africa tend to prescribe honouring harmonious relationships, this paper will reveal how this approach to morality affects the way one understands prison conditions, prison relations and criminal justice. It advances that the values of Ubuntu have the potential to aid in prisoner rehabilitation and help prisoners stand against gang life in prison. This paper will suggest that the harmony found in Ubuntu has implications different from gang conformity. Lacking the space to systematically defend harmony as a fundamental value, it nonetheless urges theorists not to disregard it when considering prison transformation in South Africa. The intention of this study is not to demonstrate that Ubuntu is superior to the more popular Western moral theories in South Africa, but rather to tease out the implications of one plausible interpretation of Ubuntu and apply it to prison communities in South Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper examines the problematic issues of countering the criminal subculture in the conditions of the penitentiary system of Kazakhstan. Currently, the administration of these institutions, various state bodies, and numerous public organisations are engaged in the rehabilitation of prisoners. Through joint efforts, it was possible to stop the wide spread of criminal ideology in places of detention. At the same time, a detailed study of the current situation shows that the criminal subculture, primarily the phenomenon of "code-bound thieves", still plays a certain role there, since it was formed over many decades of Soviet and post-Soviet history. In modern conditions, this phenomenon has been significantly transformed, but nevertheless, it seeks to strengthen its influence in the penitentiary system of Kazakhstan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the Green Paper "Breaking the Cycle: Effective Punishment, Rehabilitation and Sentencing of Offenders," launched by the British Ministry of Justice. He argues that many of the proposals may be welcomed, including a reexamination of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act, the acceptance of proposals made in the Bradley Report on mentally disordered offenders, and a rationalisation of out-of-court penalties. He enumerates for of the themes of the Green Paper that call for more specific comment.

BSTRACT [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crime prevention, offender rehabilitation, and social reintegration are fundamentally important to South Africa's criminal justice system. A critical strategy deployed to ensure these is entrepreneurship education with the purpose to capacitate offenders with entrepreneurial skills, creativity, and innovation, prepare them for self-supporting life after release, and forestall repeat offending. This approach to ensuring self-reliance and discouraging recidivism -- as it would seem - appears to be skewed more in favour of long-term offenders than short offenders whose sentences are likely to terminate before they are able to benefit from this intervention. This paper thus foregrounds the necessity of doing justice to the coverage of entrepreneurship education by the South Africa's correctional institutions to short-term offenders to avoid the inadvertent alienation from the benefits inherent in entrepreneurial education. The shortness of short-term sentences must, however, be factored into the reform sought such that the entrepreneurial training does not necessarily have to be confined to the correctional institutions or limited to sentence duration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examining the domestic legal framework in selected African States that form part of the situational docket of the International Criminal Court: Against the backdrop of recent calls for reforms at the International Criminal Court (ICC), this paper examines the domestic legal framework in selected African States that form part of the situational docket of the Court as of the time of writing. Particularly, the paper assesses the missing gaps that cause lags in cooperation with the ICC, in the experience of African States and structural and other issues that should be revisited. Building on the cases of Kenya, Uganda, Côte d'Ivoire, Sudan, and Central African Republic (CAR), the paper establishes that African States have varying degrees of domestic legal reforms towards compliance with the ICC's system of justice, and have made missteps that undermine their abilities to effectively confront impunity for alleged perpetrators of atrocity crimes. The States' compliance levels are dependent on their methods of implementing the Rome Statute, and the political contexts under which the legal reforms unfold. Beyond the shortcomings in legal reform, the African States are confronted with rival normative frameworks, including amnesty, reconciliatory tones, and traditional justice mechanisms that have implications on their abilities to perform their primary responsibilities in accountability for core international crimes. As a remedial action to the States' inadequacies in implementing the provisions of the Rome Statute, this paper recommends concerted efforts towards activating national and regional advocacy on ratification of recent amendments to the Statute in order to enhance their complete criminalization of core international crimes. The paper also calls for the activation of 'positive complementarity' as a framework for addressing state capacity gaps, including training national officials in drafting amendments to the ICC implementing legislations, and improving the understanding of national legislators on the missing links in their respective legal orders, and the need for amendments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a call for essays that analyze the U.S. system of criminality and prisons, and the signs of supporting cultural beliefs.

In a series of cases known as the Miller trilogy, the Supreme Court recognized that children are both less culpable and more amenable to rehabilitation than adults, and that those differences must be considered at sentencing. Relying on the principle that kids are different for constitutional purposes, the Court abolished capital punishment for minors and significantly limited the extent to which minors can be subject to life-without-parole (“LWOP”) terms. Equally important, the Miller trilogy was predicated on the concept of inherent human dignity, and it recognized the youthful prisoner’s need for “hope” and “reconciliation with society.” While scholars have grappled with the implementation of these cases for nearly a decade, there has been no comprehensive analysis of what these cases mean for conditions of confinement. That is, if children are different for constitutional purposes at the moment of sentencing, surely, they are still different when transported to a correctional facility and confined by the state. This Paper seeks to close that gap in the literature by making two specific contributions: first, by arguing that the Court’s juvenile sentencing decisions impose affirmative obligations upon states regarding youth conditions of confinement; and second, by articulating a standard for measuring when youth conditions of confinement violate the Eighth Amendment. As long as the United States persists in its extreme juvenile sentencing practices, the project of articulating what constitutes cruel and unusual youth confinement remains crucial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reflects on the British Government's Green Paper "Breaking the Cycle: Effective Rehabilitatuion and Sentencing of Offenders," as an attempt to reform a highly bureaucratic criminal justice system dominated by increases in the prison population. He cites the government's intention of making prisons places of purposes in addition to reducing the prison population. He indicates that although there is much to be welcomed in the general approach taken within the Green Paper, having a rehabilitation revolution will depend on major policy shifts.

The fear of the coronavirus has led to various types of scams related to the virus on the internet and in people's homes, including in Iran. Scams include fraud through corona vaccine cards, fake coronavirus tests, counterfeit drugs, phishing fraud, and sites selling masks at exorbitant prices. Criminals have also been visiting homes for corona testing or disinfection, and using the pretext of livelihood loans or pre-sale advertisements of tourist tours with corona vaccine injections. As the COVID-19 virus spreads, Iran's legislative policy has been to punish criminals to maintain the psychological safety of society. However, implementing legal principles in emergencies like this can be challenging, especially when ensuring the right to health and compliance with the basic human rights of criminals or their rehabilitation is necessary. Therefore, criminal policymakers should identify technological punishments and penal policies that are suitable for emergencies. They should create suitable grounds for achieving the goals of criminal justice in these circumstances. This article uses the descriptive-analytical method to explain Iran's legal criminal policy towards criminals in the coronavirus era. It examines the principles of human rights and criminal principles that lead to appropriate legislative policies in upcoming events like COVID-19. The paper concludes that Iran's legislative policy in emergencies like Corona is severe punishment of criminals to maintain the psychological safety of society. However, it also seeks to rehabilitate the criminals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of IgualdadES is the property of Centro de Estudios Politicos y Constitucionales and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

As neuroscience progresses, we will not only gain a better understanding of how our brains work, but also a better understanding of how to modify them, and as a result, our mental states. An important question we are faced with is whether the state could be justified in implementing such methods on criminal offenders, without their consent, for the purposes of rehabilitation and reduction of recidivism; a practice that is already legal in some jurisdictions. By focusing on a prominent type of view of free action, which I call bypassing views, this paper evaluates how such interventions may negatively impact the freedom of their subjects. The paper concludes that there will be a tension between the goals of rehabilitation and reduction of recidivism, on the one hand, and the negative impact such interventions may have on free action, on the other. Other things equal, the better that a particular intervention is at achieving the former, the more likely it is to result in the latter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper utilizes the notion of 'policy disasters' to examine the policy developments that led to the part-privatization and marketization of probation services in England and Wales – Transforming Rehabilitation. Specifically, it examines the 'internal' component of policy disasters, drawing on semi-structured interviews with senior policymakers and other relevant sources. The findings presented demonstrate that the policy dynamics relating to Transforming Rehabilitation specifically, and the departmental budget as an important underlying component, were both distinctly 'unbalanced'. This is argued to be an important explanatory factor in its damagingly swift implementation and operationalization. In closing, the paper reflects on the policy studies notion of 'policy equilibrium' to consider whether the policy landscape relating to probation in England and Wales has reached a 'steady state', or whether the ongoing apparent failings of the Transforming Rehabilitation reforms may result in a further round of considerable policy change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article delves into the multifaceted roles of prison libraries in rehabilitating and reintegrating incarcerated individuals. It begins by underscoring the significance of education in correctional facilities and the inherent challenges of providing access to educational resources due to security constraints. The primary objective of this study is to scrutinize the theoretical underpinnings that drive the rehabilitative functions of prison libraries and identify existing gaps in the literature. This research, through a comprehensive analysis of various empirical studies, reveals the pivotal role played by prison libraries in fostering personal growth, facilitating social integration among inmates, serving as havens where prisoners are afforded the autonomy to choose their reading materials, empowering them to enhance their lives through self-directed learning, and contributing to cultural enrichment, literacy advancement, and preparation for successful reintegration into society. The findings of this integrated literature review underscore the constructive influence of prison libraries on effective time management and offering meaningful activities for prisoner rehabilitation. This study highlights the need for further research that amalgamates robust theoretical frameworks with empirical evidence, thereby establishing how prison libraries can efficaciously contribute to prisoner rehabilitation. This study also informs policy formulation to enable correctional institutions to utilize these insights to bolster behavioural management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the reasons for and the subsequent longer-term impact of the closure of the Barlinnie Special Unit (BSU).Design/methodology/approach: The paper is both descriptive, providing an overview of the work of the BSU, and conceptual in that it argues that the limits of "prisoner rehabilitation" are observed in the closure of the BSU, which sounds a warning for other penal therapeutic communities and what it means to operate effectively.Findings: The BSU which assisted long-term, difficult and violent prisoners moderate their prison behaviour and then to live non-offending lives, lost the confidence of government ministers and officials, as well as senior prison managers and, seemingly, the public, so closed after being in operation for 21 years. The impact of this has been that the Scottish Prison Service has not introduced, or attempted to introduce, a similar regime for managing and treating violent and disruptive prisoners.Practical Implications: There are important lessons to be learned from the BSU experience for all who manage and work in specialist, prison therapeutic units or within prison therapeutic regimes. This includes balancing the therapeutic elements of the regime, which may involve engaging in practices which are outside the norm for custodial establishments, with those establishments' security and operational requirements, so as to not to create a disconnect between addressing offending behaviour and maintaining expected standards of wider prison conduct.Originality/value: While there have been previous evaluations of the BSU, the longer-term impact has neither been previously considered and nor has the unit's closure been considered from a penal philosophical perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, prison is not merely a place for offenders to serve sentencing. Rather it becomes an institution that carry a responsibility to rehabilitate, assist and educate the offenders to be a well-disciplined and responsible person when they return back to the society. In the Malaysian context, the rehabilitation process for the criminal offenders is one of the main agendas of the government in the efforts to reduce the crimes rate. The government through the Transformation Plan has emphasized the importance of improving the rehabilitation program not only inside the prison, but also implement various rehabilitation program outside the prison with the aim to prepare the offenders with life after they were released from the prison. This paper engages qualitative method. It refers to the documents relating to Rehabilitation Module, as well as conducts interview with the experts. It focuses on rehabilitation programmes outside prison that have been employed against the Syariah criminal offenders by the Malaysian Prison Department. The paper is significant as it highlights the experience of the Prison Department in developing and implementing rehabilitation module for the offenders outside the prison. The finding of the paper suggests that the development of the rehabilitation module for the Syariah Offender who are serving sentencing outside the prison are just and balance, which covers various aspect ranging from physical, mental, attitude, akhlak and spiritual. However, the implementation of rehabilitation programmes outside prison for Syariah offenders may need to be reviewed on its relevance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Croatian Annual of Criminal Sciences & Practice / Hrvatski Ljetopis za Kaznene Znanosti i Praksu is the property of Hrvatsko Udruzenje za Kaznene Znanosti i Praksu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the paper, the authors investigated and presented a comparative analysis of criminal legislation reform, in relation to the sentence of imprisonment in Croatia and Serbia. Although both Croatia and Serbia are obliged to harmonize their criminal legislation with EU legislation and international documents, we see that the solution of their legislators considerably different. With the new amendments to the Criminal Code of the Republic of Serbia in 2019, the so-called Tiana's law, effective from December 1 last year, imposed a sentence of life imprisonment, which has met with fierce controversy in scientific and professional circles. Life imprisonment included until then the maximum prison sentence of 30 to 40 years in prison. On the other hand, the Croatian Criminal Code in its provisions prescribe long-term imprisonment which may not be shorter than twenty-one or longer than forty years, since it was introduced life imprisonment novels of the Criminal Code of 2003 did not survive. We also find a distinction between the sentence of prison between legal provisions of the Criminal Code of Serbia and the Criminal Code of Croatia. The minimum sentence of imprisonment that can be imposed on a convicted person according to the Criminal Code of Serbia is thirty days and the maximum sentence of imprisonment is twenty years in prison. In relation to Croatian Criminal Code, the distinction is reflected in the special minimum of the legal provision for sentence of imprisonment, which, according to the criminal legislation of the Republic of Croatia, cannot be less than three months, which means that the special minimum for the sentence of imprisonment is three times higher in Croatia than in Serbia. In addition to an analysis of the legal provisions of the criminal legislation of Croatia and Serbia relating to the imposition of imprisonment, the possible proposals that should be taken into account are outlined. The paper also examines convictions that have imposed prison sentences in Croatia and Serbia, and provides a comparative analysis and presentation of the sentences imposed is given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Anuario de Psicología Jurídica is the property of Colegio Oficial de Psicologos de Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Zagreb Law Review is the property of University of Zagreb Law School / Pravni fakultet Sveucilista u Zagrebu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper reports on a peer mentoring initiative in a young offenders institution (YOI) that aimed to bring the benefits of mentoring to a new range of beneficiaries in the specific context of the work of a Lifelong Learning Network (LLN). The goal of the project was to facilitate goal-setting and participation in education by a group of young men who may have had negative experiences of education at school. Fourteen prisoners took part in peer mentor training sessions to equip them to act as mentors for fellow prisoners. They have subsequently gone on to mentor others within the prison, with positive results. The paper reports on qualitative feedback from the young participants that suggests that taking part in peer mentoring has made a real difference to their aspirations and goal-setting regarding further education options. This initiative is set in the wider context of what is known about the success of prison mentoring schemes and of evidence for the links between prison education and reduction of re-offending rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Criminal justice researchers often seek to predict criminal recidivism and to estimate treatment effects for community corrections programs. Although random assignment provides a desirable avenue to estimating treatment effects, often estimation must be based on observational data from operating corrections programs. Using observational data raises the risk of selection bias. In the community corrections contexts, researchers can sometimes use judges as instrumental variables. However, the use of instrumental variable estimation is complicated for nonlinear models, and when studying criminal recidivism, researchers often choose to use survival models, which are nonlinear given right-hand-censoring or competing events. This paper discusses a procedure for estimating survival models with judges as instruments. It discusses strengths and weaknesses of this approach and demonstrates some of the estimation properties with a computer simulation. Although this paper’s focus is narrow, its implications are broad. A conclusion argues that instrumental variable estimation is valuable for a broad range of topics both within and outside of criminal justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The papers in this special issue will be immensely valuable in taking forward the agenda of research, practice and theory construction in the field of offender rehabilitation. Some have consolidated existing knowledge in specific areas and analysed its potential implications. Others have identified the key points at issue in the debate between different models of the rehabilitation process. Still others have explored or developed a number of relatively neglected matters, including the delivery of treatment within a coercive framework; the role of labelling in change and desistance processes; the importance of the therapeutic alliance in offence-focused work; and reconceptualisation of the responsivity principle within the framework of therapeutic jurisprudence. The present paper extracts some further principal themes from the spectrum of issues raised. Discussion of these is grouped under the four headings of theory construction, evidence accumulation, practical implementation, and ethical and political dimensions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This article explores the case of the Queensland's reformatory for boys through the years 1871–1919 to analyse how the institution negotiated the complex, and at times competing, goals of reforming, educating and punishing its inmate population. Design/methodology/approach: The article relies on documentary evidence, including archival material produced by the institution and newspaper records published between 1865, when the legislation allowing the institution to be created was passed, to 1919, when the institution ceased to be known as a "reformatory". Findings: This research demonstrates that, despite considerable changes during the studied period, the overarching goal of reforming criminal and potentially criminal young people continuously relied on achieving a balance between reformative techniques such as religious instruction and work placements, providing a useful education and punishing offenders. It also demonstrates that, despite efforts to achieve this balance, the institution was often described as unsuccessful. Originality/value: Due to the paucity of available archival evidence, there is still relatively little known about how the reformatories of late-19th- and early-20th-century Australia attempted to carry out programmes of moral reformation. This paper contributes to the field through an analysis of an institution which faced unusual challenges as a result of a complex inmate population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers the impact that Transforming Rehabilitation has had upon Approved Premises (APs) since the process began following the publication of the National Probation Service Review Paper, E3 Blueprint (the three Es being Effectiveness, Efficiency and Excellence), in November 2015. This paper outlines what service delivery across the organisation will look like in the near future. At the time of writing we are in the consultation phase, which has yet to be concluded. I have drawn upon quality assurance information from a number of National Probation Service (NPS) North West Region Approved Premises documents published between 2009 and the dissolving of Probation Trusts in 2014. This has enabled some analysis of the efficacy of existing group work programmes and purposeful activities in place at each AP. The paper reflects the personal experiences of the author, including experiences from a previous change process, and how the initial transfer from Trusts to the NPS altered the practice and political landscape for an innovative and creative AP team. The paper concludes by considering the potential consequences for APs as their rehabilitative regimes will inevitably change. It considers how this could be a constructive process as each hostel is measured against quality improvement and assurance measures determined by an external body – the Royal College of Psychiatry (RCP). This is as a consequence of each hostel working towards or having achieved the RCP Enabling Environment Award (EEA) status, involving full team training in the Knowledge and Understanding Framework to better understand and respond to residents who have emerging or diagnosed personality disorders. Reaching and then retaining this EEA standard is likely to be an ongoing challenge. Refreshingly, creating an enabling environment demands high levels of engagement, coupled with the development of understanding, nurturing and caring relationships for residents and staff alike. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been a recent push to legalise marijuana use, possession, and trade at state and federal levels in the United States. The Marijuana Justice Act 2017 proposes a reinvestment fund to remediate harms suffered by minority communities from the unequal enforcement of criminal drug offences. Are practices like the 'reinvestment fund' aligned with the theoretical foundations of restorative justice? Restorative justice has often been advanced by its proponents as a major development in criminological thinking and as an alternative to retribution, deterrence, and rehabilitation. On that basis, the emergence of restorative justice practices that work within the traditional criminal justice system challenges the existence of restorative justice as a separate penal measure. The paper defends the Unified Theory of Punishment, which adopts a unique view of restorative justice. It rejects theoretical approaches that advocate for a pure theory of restorative justice and/or penal abolition. Restorative justice should be integral to any criminal justice model, and retribution, deterrence, and rehabilitation can work under one framework. Proposals set by the Marijuana Justice Act 2017 are advantageously in line with the Unified Theory of Punishment's understanding of crime and punishment, and evidense the ability of restorative justice to effectively address the repercussions of past serious criminal offences on members of the community. The application of restorative justice to legalisation processes is unique and advances knowledge of restorative thought within a legislative context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Criminal Court is a very controversial institution. It is extensively criticised by both its critics and its supporters. This article examines what steps have been taken to reform the Court. It considers issues such as the need for better communications and messaging by the Court. The paper takes up how and why the Court needs to engage better and in more far-reaching ways with a host of role players that affect the terrain in which the Court operates. It is argued that more reform is needed in how the Court is lead, how it operates, and who the judges and staff are. It is argued that greater diversity is needed at the Court. Also taken up are how the reach of the Court can be increased beyond only prosecutions, how the Court can assist states to prosecute more cases themselves, and how the Court can become more victim centred. A core theme is how state cooperation can be enhanced. A range of suggestions are made so as to enhance the role of the Court in the years to come. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the literature relating to libraries in prisons and introduces findings from a recent study that explores the lived experience of using Australian prison libraries. The paper identifies literature regarding the history of libraries in prisons, both in Australia and elsewhere, and then studies contemporary prison libraries and the standards and documents that guide their management and practices. One of the main roles of incarceration is the reform of the individual. As the role of education in this process is considered to be crucial, the educational and broader information needs of prisoners are discussed, along with the role prison libraries can play in supporting prisoners to satisfy these needs. This discussion is followed by a study of the nature of existing research and publications relating to prison libraries. The lack of understanding of the prison library user experience, particularly within the Australian context, is identified. A recent doctoral study designed to address this lack of knowledge is introduced, and the paper ends with the identification of five themes identified by that study that describe the experience of using Australian prison libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the contribution of modern correctional service in health promotion exemplified by the case study of Norwegian health promotion policies in prison settings. Design/methodology/approach – This paper applies a two-fold methodology. First a narrative systematic literature review based on the Norwegian policy documents relevant for correctional settings is conducted. This is followed by a general review of the literature on the principles of humane service delivery in offender rehabilitation. Findings – Alongside the contribution of the Risk-Need-Responsivity Model in corrections and prevention of reoffending, the findings demonstrate an evident involvement of Norway in health promotion through authentic health promoting actions applied in prison settings. The actions are anchored in health policy's overarching goals of equity and “health in all public policy” aiming to reduce social inequalities in population health. Originality/value – In order to achieve a potential success of promoting health in correctional settings, policy makers have much to gain from endorsing a dialogue that respects the unique contributions of correctional research and health promotion. Focussing on inter-agency partnership and interdisciplinary collaboration between humane services may result in promising outcomes for individual, community and public health gain. The organizational factors and community involvement may be a significant aspect in prisoner rehabilitation, reentry and reintegration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this research is to examine the meanings and impact of implementing restorative practice (RP) within three prisons from the perspectives of prisoners and staff. The prisons were selected as they demonstrate outwardly a commitment to RP and also are indicative of good cultures, according to recent MoJ data. The methodology is qualitative, using a variety of research techniques including semi-structured interviews and observation. The paper also studies the available literature on restorative justice (RJ) in prisons and compares it to the literature on embedding RP in schools which has received more empirical research attention. The paper illustrates that the school's literature could benefit custodial settings. The key findings demonstrate benefits experienced by both residents and staff when RP is implemented; implemented well, RP delivers and supports a culture of fairness, avoiding or defusing confrontation and contributing to constructive approaches to prison and postrelease life and relationships. However, there is widespread confusion as to the definition of RP and what constitutes RP. Few staff are trained and assumptions about restorative justice hamper the possibilities of RP. RP does not sit at the heart of the prisons' philosophy, as in schools identifying as 'restorative'. Instead, they use RP as a form of social 'lubricant', managing challenges as they arise through the discretion of those capable of employing RP. In conclusion, the paper makes recommendations based on the findings for further embedding RP across the secure estate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the paper is the analysis of hope expressed in the prisoners' narratives about romantic relationships. The study included 301 prisoners from different prisons and 253 persons forming the control group. Participants wrote stories about their close romantic relationships. The narrative indicators of hope were as follows: the number of positive ending of the stories, the number of optimistic views of the situation, temporal approach of the story, mental processes. Intergroup comparisons have been conducted. The results showed that prisoners have a less optimistic view of their romantic relationship, their stories have positive ending less often, they also have a lower level of the mental processes' indicator. However, they describe their stories in present and future tenses which may indicate to some level that hope is present in their narratives. Insight seems to be an important factor constituting the basis for building personal resources, which positively correlates with an optimistic view of the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of a parole system is to rehabilitate and reintegrate parolees into society. In Malaysia, lack of such community rehabilitation programmes in addition to problems faced by parole officers are a concern. This paper examines the legal and operational predicament faced by the community officers. This paper adopts a qualitative methodology, and data is obtained from five case studies of regional prisons in Malaysia as well as from the Prison Act 1995 and library-based sources. Findings show that rehabilitating parolees is demanding on the parole officers especially so when the rehabilitation purpose and specific duties of such officers are not covered by the Prison Act 1995. Additionally, operational difficulties such as lack of sharing of information on the parolees' rehabilitation assessment and report from the prisons, the officers' lack of expertise and heavy workloads hamper their work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is increasing focus on the prevalence of learning disabilities in the criminal justice system. The aim of this paper is to examine the supports and resources currently in place to support people with learning disabilities through each stage of the Irish judicial process. A review of international literature regarding people with disabilities was conducted specifically in relation to the methods used to identify those who are risk of becoming offenders, the process in place when an individual comes in contact with the criminal justice system, other professionals and practitioners who undertake criminal work, their incarceration into a rehabilitation setting and the supports in place to successfully integrate offenders back into their own community. As a result of this review, the present paper highlights the prevalence of learning disabilities among offenders and the pre-existing risk factors that identify a person with a disability in their pathway to becoming an offender. The existing literature calls for the introduction of training and education in relation to disabilities for those working in the judicial system in addition to more appropriate rehabilitation settings and effective support in assisting those returning to their own communities. Overall, this paper finds that a multidisciplinary and multi-agency approach is vital and should be governed by national guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to advance the case for a more fully interdisciplinary understanding of offender rehabilitation, partly as a means of shedding light upon and moving beyond contemporary 'paradigm conflicts'. It begins with a review of current arguments about what a credible 'offender' rehabilitation theory requires and by exploring some aspects of current debates about different theories. It goes on to locate this specific kind of contemporary theory building in the context of historical arguments about and critiques of rehabilitation as a concept and in practice. In the third part of the paper, I explore the nature of the relationship between desistance theories and rehabilitation theories, so as to develop my concluding argument; that is, that debates about psychological rehabilitation have been hampered by a failure to engage fully with debates about at least three other forms of rehabilitation (legal, moral, and social) that emerge as being equally important in the process of desistance from crime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2008 the Norwegian government published a White Paper called Punishment that Works, outlining correctional policy for a period of five to ten years. The central message of the White Paper could be summarized as ‘less use of prison and better rehabilitation’. It was intended that a decrease in the use of prison would lead to an increase in the use of community-based sentences and ways of serving prison sentences. Better rehabilitation implies increased use of services and facilities outside the prison system. Both tendencies favour an intensified development of probation work. Whilst the future for probation work in Norway therefore generally looks positive the authors also consider some of the challenges to the proposed policy. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Some of the themes arising in this Special Issue are discussed and suggestions made as to future research and theoretical needs. It is noteworthy that increased academic and research attention is being focused on violent behaviour, balancing that devoted to sex offending. More sophisticated theoretical models are being developed, with an increasing recognition of the importance of situational factors, of the heterogeneity of offender groups and of the role of affective states as antecedents. Such developing knowledge needs to influence the future development of therapeutic and rehabilitation programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Derecho y Ciencias Sociales is the property of Universidad Nacional de La Plata and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Using an assisted desistance framework, this paper explores the lived experiences of 11 volunteers on the Community Based Health and First Aid programme, which operates in 14 prisons across Ireland and aims to enhance community health, hygiene awareness and first aid knowledge among prisoners through peer-to-peer education. The findings suggest that participation fostered a sense of agency among volunteers and facilitated the development of a new non-criminal self, centred on the 'wounded healer' identity. Additionally, participation appeared to deepen volunteers' pro-social bonds with other prisoners, staff and families. The contribution of these findings to knowledge about desistance and desistance-focused practice is considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first indicator of the influence of adversarial elements in the criminal procedure of the Republic of Serbia was the establishment of the institute of cooperating witnesses less than two decades ago. Until 2011, the Code of Criminal Procedure was amended several times, so the material conditions for acquiring this procedural status changed accordingly. The final break with the long-standing criminal tradition was made, first by giving the defendant the opportunity to be a party in concluding a plea agreement, then guilt, and then from 2011 a party in concluding a testimony agreement. The paper first presents a comparative overview of the institute of witnesses associated in the domestic legislative framework through long - term legislation, and then points out their similarities and differences through certain specifics of the institute of cooperating witnesses. As the newly established legislation is not harmonized with the new procedural institute, it is pointed out the need to supplement the current legal solutions, especially in the part related to the procedural and program protection of the defendant associate. The focus of the subject is on criminal acts of organized crime. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the 1920's, prisoners made use of their time in producing wood products that were sold to foreign and local buyers. This system did not only make an assembly line of prisoners; it was also a means of reforming the prisoners. Bilibid prisoners were transformed into skilled laborers. Rehabilitation and isolation of prisoners created profit for the benefit of the administration of the penal system and thus as a source of funding. These products also served as material artifacts that project the productive condition of local criminals. Moreover, the products manufactured inside Bilibid manifested the so called effectiveness of the disciplining power of the penal system by the Americans. From this historical context, the paper aims to shed light on how political prisoners transformed their prison cell from a space of oppression into a place of subversion by analyzing selected cases of political prisoners from 2015-2018. It can also be seen here that the artistic productions of political prisoners are concrete manifestations on how they re-shaped and re-imagined their life experiences during imprisonment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessible summary • This paper talks about a treatment group for men with learning disabilities who are at risk of sexual offending. • It looks at the four stages to sexual offending. • We looked at the experiences of some of the men who completed the group. • After the group the men accepted more responsibility for their behaviour and understood more about the effects on their victims. • More work needs to be done to help the men use their new skills and knowledge in their lives outside of the group. This paper reports on the process of helping offenders, and those at risk of offending, with mild learning disabilities, understand their steps to offending. The four-stage model of sexual offending provides a framework to enable participants and facilitators to understand the individuals’ offending, in particular the steps or stages that lead to it. This is one of the modules in a nationally provided group-based treatment programme. Four men completed the local programme and their progress during this module is reported. A number of themes arising from the work the men did in this module are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on qualitative analysis of interviews with women attending Women's Community Services (WCSs) in England and Wales, the paper highlights narrative strategies through which women refute the offender identity. Accounts suggest that relationships with key workers and peers and the education and employment opportunities available at the WCSs are crucial in supporting desistance from offending. In addition, the accounts demonstrate an awareness of the social structural disadvantage in which offending is embedded on the part of staff and women attending the services. The implication of the critique of Gender Responsive Programming for our findings is discussed. In the face of a renewed emphasis by the Ministry of Justice on the robustness of community sentences and uncertainty of funding for WCSs in the newly marketized probation provision, the paper argues that WCSs have provided decriminalizing and desistance opportunities for women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The overall aim of this paper is to explore the operation of the Latvian penal system and to examine the impact of physical prison conditions on social relationships among prisoners and key stakeholders, such as prison officers and administration staff. Specifically the research aims to explore how prison conditions affect the interpersonal relationships and social order among prisoners and prison staff. If prison's overriding goals of reform and rehabilitation are to be achieved, prisoners as well as prison staff need to be asked how this can be accomplished better (redesigning the prison environment, receiving adequate assistance throughout the sentencing and appropriate help after release). Therefore, one of the envisaged outcomes of this research is not only to understand how the current prison physical conditions affect the relationship building and the maintenance of order within Latvian Central Prison, but how inmates and prison staff could also provide valuable input in future prison strategy design and implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The eradication of corruption is a top priority in efforts to build good governance and transparency in Indonesia. This study explores the implementation of poverty sanctions for corruption offenders as an effective strategy to recover state losses and deter future corruption. It examines the need for legal reform in criminal accountability to ensure fair restitution of state losses and a stronger deterrent effect. By analyzing the current Corruption Law and proposed revisions, the study highlights the potential for strengthening poverty sanction mechanisms in line with principles of justice and human rights. Findings suggest that measures such as asset freezing, prohibition from holding public office, and stringent financial monitoring can significantly contribute to combating corruption. Legal reform is crucial in providing a solid foundation for these efforts, with consistent and transparent implementation of revised regulations being key to success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]