Rehabilitating Offenders Research Paper

As a country, we should care about all of our citizens and work toward bettering them, because we are only as strong as our weakest link. When it concerns the issue of corrections it should not be a discussion of punishment or rehabilitation. Instead, it should be a balance of both that puts the spotlight on rehabilitating offenders that are capable and willing to change their lives for the better. Through rehabilitation a number of issues in the corrections field can be solved from mental health to overcrowding. More importantly, it allows offenders the chance to do and be better once released from prison. This paper analyzes what both rehabilitation and punishment are as well as how they play a part in corrections. It also discusses the current reasons that punishment as the dominant model of corrections is not as effective as rehabilitation. After explaining rehabilitation and punishment, then breaking down the issues with punishment, I will recommend a plan for balance. A plan that will lower incarceration rates and give offenders a second chance.

Prison is obviously not working on rehabilitating prisoners because there are prisoners who are released, but they don't return to prison. Yet, the majority of prisoners released do go back to jail. Criminals think they're not going to get caught or they're so emotionally desperate or psychologically distressed that they don't care about the consequences. To lower the recidivism prisons should offer real rehabilitation to prisoners. Criminals are not all waste people; most of them could just have haven a crisis that make them commit the crimes.

The correctional system has three main goals: punish, protect the community and rehabilitate the offender. However, it is unclear how well the modern U.S correctional system achieves these goals and whether the money invested in the correctional system might be better spent. These are some of the points I will

Brett, I agree that rehabilitation should be the primary goal in sentencing. Rehabilitation teaches a criminal how to interact with the community after being away for a set amount of time. Days in prison and jail can hinder the positive thoughts in one’s mind. Anger and depression can build up, and make the criminals want to act out again. The rehabilitation process can even mend burnt bridges with family and friends.

Per the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), nearly 50% of current inmates are jailed for nonviolent offenses (Federal Bureau of Prisons, n.d.). Almost 68% (two-thirds) of inmates return to prison within three years of being released, and 77% (three-quarters) were arrested within five years of leaving (Topic, n.d.). These numbers are staggering and seem to go largely ignored by mainstream media and the public. Most of them view people in prison as deserving of it and see no need to offer them (prisoners) help. While there are some prisons that offer rehabilitation in forms such as educational programs, psychiatric treatment and various others, they are largely not implemented in prisons across the country. These programs are detrimental in helping inmates cope with prison life and ease the transition back into civilian life. Psychiatric treatment is of the utmost importance as it benefits inmates tremendously. College programs are another key beneficial factor in prison. Seeing as in prior years, a lot of inmates failed to find work after leaving jail. In more recent years, more and more programs are being added to prisons for inmates to take advantage of as well as the return of Pell grants for them. The programs allow inmates to train and become certified while in jail, and offer employment after being released. At least giving some hope to those who have none while incarcerated. Prison rehabilitation should be offered to inmates because it helps with psychological programs,

To combat these issues various steps need to be taken three different areas of reform. The first being preparing prisoners for reentry into the community. Starting namely with keeping the prisoners with longer sentences updated on relevant technology and social, political, and legal changes so they know how to operate and function in a modern society upon release. Another essential part of preparing offenders for reentry would be providing housing upon release for all those who are unable to afford housing or do not have housing that does not violate probation requirements. Secondly, training offenders valuable life skills while imprisoned should heighten their chance for success upon release. Continuing programs that allow offenders to obtain

A standout amongst the most imperative elements impacting an offender's effective reintegration back into the community is the social bonds and connections the offender has kept up all through his or her sentence. According to Visher and Travis (2003), the quality of family connections significantly affects the successfulness or failure of the post discharge arrangement. This is because, according to Naser and Vigne, released prisoners relied on family members extensively for housing, financial support, and emotional support. In spite of what the vast majority think, offenders have a tendency to have expectations of family backing and these elevated standards are generally met or surpassed after discharge (Naser & La Vigne, 2006; Benson et

Hello Prof. McClure and Fellow Classmates, Due to the positive feedback that I received in Unit 3, I remained on the topic of “Ex-Offenders Reform Programs. This is an important topic because I am an ex-offender and I utilized the resources Wisconsin Ex-Offenders Reentry Programs provided by The Department of Corrections.

With the highest incarcerated rate in the world, does the United States prison systems offer quality rehabilitation or just punishment? According to data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, there was approximately 706 prisoners per 100,000 residents, or about 2.2 million prisoners in 2012 and within 3 years, almost 6 out of 10 released inmates will be rearrested and half will be back in prison. According to data from www.gpo.gov , the vast majority of prisoners are not rehabilitated. Two-thirds of released prisoners are re-arrested and one-half are re-incarcerated within three years of release from prison. Rates of recidivism rise to approximately 75%-85% of released prisoners are likely to be re-arrested within a decade of release. Successful rehabilitation is vital when releasing an inmate into the community as it produces a significant reduction in criminal recidivism. The purpose of incarceration is to protect the public and punish as well as rehabilitate the criminal. It is designed to change an inmate's view of life and alter their future behavior when re-entering society. Prisons offer education, labor, and other rehabilitation sources to inmates, so why is the recidivism rate so high with these programs in place?

     The idea of sentencing a criminal for a period of time in a prison isn't working, so prisons should focus more on changing their rehabilitation programs. Life in prison should be like the outside world as much as possible, given the fact of imprisonment. Prisoners would be less prepared if the prison environment is artificial and abnormal compared to the outside world they will have to encounter later on. A prisoner also needs to keep family ties. Research in

For the past weeks we have been focusing on punishment of the offenders of domestic violence, throughout the weeks I have to amit that I really did not think of rehabilitation. My mind has been on helping the victims in anyway possible and punish the offender. Buzawa, Buzawa, and Stark (2012) stated the goals of domestic violence courts which is "Punish past acts of physical abuse, protect victims from further abuse, and rehabilitate offenders" (p. 323). In the criminal domestic violence courts 27% of judges, court staff, prosectutors, and etc. see rehabilitating offenders as important. Many would say this is a waste of time and money, that a offender of domestic violence can not change. I came across this site that is called "ProChange" on domestic violence. It states,

You just got out of prison now what (Mooallem)? Every year, 650, 000 people get out of prison across the U.S. Most of them struggle to obtain a job or permanent housing. While there are many programs created by the government to help ex-offenders reintegrate the society, what are the

People often assume that prisons are not beneficial and are only used to house criminals in the interim while they serve their conviction. Once a criminal is discharged, they will begin to break the same crimes they were to being convicted. Rehabilitation or the act of returning an object to an original, pure state, will assist in limiting the amount of repeat offenders returning to prison. Prisons across America do not provide any effective rehabilitation programs, ultimately causing prisoners who are discharged to return back to prison because they are used to practicing a bad habit. Prison is only an effective means of rehabilitating criminals if a prison offers effective rehabilitation programs that gives prisoners the opportunity to strengthen their education, career and life skills. This way discharged prisoners will

On January 18, 1989, the abandonment of rehabilitation in corrections was confirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court. In Mistretta v. United States, the Court upheld federal "sentencing guidelines" which remove rehabilitation from serious consideration when sentencing offenders. Defendants will henceforth be sentenced strictly for the crime, with no recognition given to such factors as amenability to treatment, personal and family history, previous efforts to rehabilitate oneself, or possible alternatives to prison. The Court outlined the history of the debate: "Rehabilitation as a sound enological theory came to be questioned and, in any event, was regarded by some as an unattainable goal for most cases." The Court cited a Senate Report which

I agree with you wholeheartedly in regards to one of the purposes of prison is to rehabilitate. However, how well does rehabilitation work? Despite the overwhelming size of the correctional system in the United States, the high recidivism rates associated with this system, and stark differences across states’ recidivism rates, relatively little work has examined the factors related to differences in recidivism