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Intensive interventions with high-risk youths: Promising approaches in juvenile probation and parole
88
Book Reviews
perpetrators, face the fact that they will be released from prison and returned to their own or some other new family. Failure to reintegrate them into society translates into the possibility of reoffense. The failure to treat the offender spells thrther child victimization. My concerns with the book stem from the authors' failure to provide what they advocated in their book. This refers to the need for some empirical assessment of the effectiveness o f their approach to treatment. My own institutional experience has never led me to believe that the volume of tears an offender sheds or expression of newly found insights has any relationship to post-institutional success. The authors' case studies of successful treatment outcomes do not provide more than passing references to offenders doing well after release from prison. Ingersol and Patton offer some interesting and practical advice to those who offer treatment to perpetrators. It is when they begin to deal with policy issues that the book begins to lose its impact. This is not to say that reform is not needed. Rather, the authors reco m m e n d global policy changes based on the needs of a treatment population that is limited, at best. Ingersol and Patton see five areas of change that need to occur; four are related to sentencing policy, presentence, sentencing, prison, and postrelease policy. They also add general policy recommendations related to research, the education of treatment providers, and communication and cooperation among service providers. The problem with the approach taken by Ingersol and Patton is that most treatment professionals will never have the opportunity, or bad luck (depending upon your point of view), to work with the regressed sex offenders identified as the target population in this book. They are incarcerated or paroled offenders who want to hide their identities as well as the nature of their crimes. The authors recognize this and stress the need to work within the confines of the criminal justice system. This is because of the need for externally imposed controls on the offender, and they would add the need for mandated long-term treatment. My point is that the authors raised global policy issues when
there are internal justice system issues that seem much more important, regarding the opportunity to receive treatment and, more important from my perspective, the v i c t i m / child. These issues include whether criminal versus juvenile court (dependency) cases are filed and whether the offender or the victim is forced to leave the home when sex abuse is disclosed. Despite the fact that the family systems approach is stressed, the truth is that mothers often support abusive parents or stepparents and force the victim to leave the home rather than the perpetrator. This issue was not raised and reflects the focus on adjudicated, incarcerated offenders and not the total child sexual abuse picture seen by those who work in children's services in the larger community. Despite this questioning of scope and focus, this reviewer would recommend this book to those who attempt to treat the perpetrators of sexual abuse. The authors should be applauded for this work, which was based on their own personal experience and provides some guidance for those who wish to plan and implement perpetrator treatment programs. M y wish is that Ingersol and Patton had provided more information regarding their treatment approach, their case studies, and, most importantly, their treatment outcomes.
Lincoln J. Fry Department of Family Medicine Southeastern University of the Health Sciences North Miami Beach, Florida 33162-3097
Intensive Interventions with High-Risk Youths: Promising Approaches in Juvenile Probation and Parole edited by Troy L. Armstrong Criminal Justice Press (Willow Tree Press, Inc., P. O. Box 249, Monsey, New York 10952), 1991, 447 pp., s o f t c o v e r - - $ 3 0 . 0 0 In this day of frequent pessimism and cynicism about criminal justice issues, it is a delight to find a book that discusses a rather
Book Reviews innovative approach and offers evidence for its effectiveness. The idea of intensive supervision is an important one. For example, I have pointed out that, based on my work with sex offenders, none of them are fully cured, and thus they need supervision and treatment after they leave institutions (Eisenman, 1991b). This book extends the idea to include a wide range of high-risk juveniles on probation or parole. After an introduction by the editor, there are three sections of unnumbered chapters: Part I is An Overview of Juvenile Intensive Supervision and consists of three chapters, Part II is Programming Issues and Specialized Approaches in Juvenile Intensive Supervision, and consists of six chapters, while Part III is Evaluation of Juvenile Intensive Supervision, consisting of five chapters. Unfortunately, the book has no index. But, because it consists of intelligent chapters in a very important area, this book is of great value. In his introduction, Armstrong points out that while adult programs tend to be limited to surveillance and supervision, intensive programs for juveniles often have a treatment component as well. In a chapter titled "Intervention with Juvenile Offenders: Recent and Long-Term Changes," Ted B. Palmer points out that in the early 1960s to early 1970s, there was confidence regarding the ability of people to change offenders. However, this confidence disappeared and was replaced by pessimism from 1975 to 1981, with limited but increasingly positive views after that. Although Palmer points out that multiproblem offenders are not necessarily "sick," it is wise, when planning programs for them, to take into account all kinds of possible problems they may have, including developmental problems, personal attitudes, and pressures from their environment. Thus, many interventions can be planned, even if the offender is not seen as neurotic or psychotic. A good example of a detailed intervention program is presented by Norman Skonovd and Wesley Krause in their chapter, "The Regional Youth Educational Facility: A Promising Short-Term Intensive Institutional and Aftercare Program for Juvenile Court Wards." They note that the pessimism of Martinson's
89
(1974) "nothing works" viewpoint can be questioned, since most of the evidence for the "nothing works" view compared one correctional program against another. What about comparing the program against a control group that receives nothing considered beneficial? Also, Martinson himself has become more optimistic in recent years, according to the authors. Programs can work if they have effective ingredients, and the Regional Youth Educational Facility incorporates treatment, education, training, and work experience. Without an explanation of how each of these is defined, suffice it to say that a multifaceted program would seem to have a greater chance for success than one which focused on only one aspect, such as treatment only or education only. And, in fact, Skonovd and Krause present data showing less recidivism, compared to the comparison groups. They say that they do not know exactly what aspect(s) of the program account for its success, but the program does everything from job training to assessing whether or not the ward has a visual problem. Such a thorough approach seems likely to lead to a greater likelihood of success than a program with a limited focus. It is easy to define people as deviant and try to forget about them by sending them to prison (Eisenman, 1991a). This may be what was happening in Lucas County, Ohio, as described by Richard G. Wiebush and Donna M. Hamparian in their chapter, "Variations in 'Doing' Juvenile Intensive Supervision: Programmatic Issues in Four Ohio Jurisdictions." Part of the motivation for Lucas County officials to look for alternatives to their usual way of doing things was the realization that while Lucas County is only the fifth largest of the six major metropolitan areas in Ohio, it led the state in commitments to state penal institutions. Thus, an alternative was sought. There are many problems in drawing up alternative programs. For example, status offenders are different from true criminal offenders, and they are often youth with many special needs. Cuyahoga County thus decided to exclude status offenders from the Intensive Supervision Programs, while Delaware County made the opposite decision, to
90
Book Reviews
include status offenders. It may be that Cuyahoga County decided to spend its resources attempting to reform those who are a threat to society, while the philosophy of Delaware County was to help those in need. The authors point out that an important issue is who decides whether or not a youth goes into the Intensive Supervision Program. Those who design a program may want only certain categories of offenders included, but courts or probation/parole agencies may include offenders they believe appropriate, if they have the power to do so. This can lead to jurisdictional and political conflicts. This kind of issue is addressed further by J. Fred Springer in "Selective Aftercare for Juvenile Parolees: Environment and Placement Decisions." What is supposed to happen, says Springer, can be influenced by what the actual personnel do, as opposed to what the program plans call for. Thus, the best-intentioned program may not live up to its ideals (Eisenman, in press). One value of this book is that it points out important issues one may not have thought about but which may be crucial for program effectiveness. For example, Christopher Baird, in "Intensive Supervision Programs for HighRisk Juveniles: Critical Issues of Program Evaluation," points out that intensive supervision programs must result in diverting youth from institutions if they are to be considered successful. Otherwise, they represent an additional expenditure and may be seen as not cost effective. But if they keep youth out of institutions, then all the good things they do may be allowed to continue because the intensive supervision programs are saving money. Saving money for the state may be a crucial component of the program, as pointed out by William H. Barton and Jeffrey A. Butts in "Intensive Supervision Alternatives for Adjudicated Juveniles." Even though recidivism was not reduced, the community programs saved the state of Michigan nine million dollars over the four years of the evaluation, since the youth were not in state institutions. While a failure to reduce recidivism is disappointing and not as optimistic
a finding as the findings of Skonovd and Krause, the money savings are, nevertheless, quite important, especially in these times of budget problems faced by all levels of government. This is an important book. We need to look beyond the usual ways of doing things and see if intensive supervision experiences can result in a better approach, at least for those seen as qualifying for such programs. There are many important issues: who should be sent to such programs, how should the programs be run, how is discharge or success determined, and so forth. However, intensive programs need support. I believe that the reason some programs work with offenders is that they have intensive, multiple sources of intervention. Thus, Henggeler and Borduin (1990) reported a multifaceted approach, which was successful in dealing with behavior problems in children and adolescents. The volume reviewed here contributes to helping us understand how interventions with highrisk youth can be successful. All the answers are not in, by a long shot, but books like the present one provide an important step along the road to success. REFERENCES Eisenman, R. (in press). Creativity and anti-creativity in a prison: An organizational study. Creative Child
and Adult Quarterly. (1991a). From crime to creativity: Psychological and social factors in deviance. Dubuque, IA:
- -
Kendall/Hunt. - (1991b). Monitoring and postconfinement treatment of sex offenders: An urgent need. Psychol Rep 69: 1089-90. Henggeler, S. W., and Borduin, C. M. (1990). Family
therapy and beyond: A multisystemic approach to treating the behavior problems of children and adolescents. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. Martinson, R. (1974). What works? Questions and answers about prison reform. Pub Interest 35: 22-54.
Russell Eisenman Department of Psychology McNeese State University Lake Charles, Louisiana 70609-1895
Book Reviews
perpetrators, face the fact that they will be released from prison and returned to their own or some other new family. Failure to reintegrate them into society translates into the possibility of reoffense. The failure to treat the offender spells thrther child victimization. My concerns with the book stem from the authors' failure to provide what they advocated in their book. This refers to the need for some empirical assessment of the effectiveness o f their approach to treatment. My own institutional experience has never led me to believe that the volume of tears an offender sheds or expression of newly found insights has any relationship to post-institutional success. The authors' case studies of successful treatment outcomes do not provide more than passing references to offenders doing well after release from prison. Ingersol and Patton offer some interesting and practical advice to those who offer treatment to perpetrators. It is when they begin to deal with policy issues that the book begins to lose its impact. This is not to say that reform is not needed. Rather, the authors reco m m e n d global policy changes based on the needs of a treatment population that is limited, at best. Ingersol and Patton see five areas of change that need to occur; four are related to sentencing policy, presentence, sentencing, prison, and postrelease policy. They also add general policy recommendations related to research, the education of treatment providers, and communication and cooperation among service providers. The problem with the approach taken by Ingersol and Patton is that most treatment professionals will never have the opportunity, or bad luck (depending upon your point of view), to work with the regressed sex offenders identified as the target population in this book. They are incarcerated or paroled offenders who want to hide their identities as well as the nature of their crimes. The authors recognize this and stress the need to work within the confines of the criminal justice system. This is because of the need for externally imposed controls on the offender, and they would add the need for mandated long-term treatment. My point is that the authors raised global policy issues when
there are internal justice system issues that seem much more important, regarding the opportunity to receive treatment and, more important from my perspective, the v i c t i m / child. These issues include whether criminal versus juvenile court (dependency) cases are filed and whether the offender or the victim is forced to leave the home when sex abuse is disclosed. Despite the fact that the family systems approach is stressed, the truth is that mothers often support abusive parents or stepparents and force the victim to leave the home rather than the perpetrator. This issue was not raised and reflects the focus on adjudicated, incarcerated offenders and not the total child sexual abuse picture seen by those who work in children's services in the larger community. Despite this questioning of scope and focus, this reviewer would recommend this book to those who attempt to treat the perpetrators of sexual abuse. The authors should be applauded for this work, which was based on their own personal experience and provides some guidance for those who wish to plan and implement perpetrator treatment programs. M y wish is that Ingersol and Patton had provided more information regarding their treatment approach, their case studies, and, most importantly, their treatment outcomes.
Lincoln J. Fry Department of Family Medicine Southeastern University of the Health Sciences North Miami Beach, Florida 33162-3097
Intensive Interventions with High-Risk Youths: Promising Approaches in Juvenile Probation and Parole edited by Troy L. Armstrong Criminal Justice Press (Willow Tree Press, Inc., P. O. Box 249, Monsey, New York 10952), 1991, 447 pp., s o f t c o v e r - - $ 3 0 . 0 0 In this day of frequent pessimism and cynicism about criminal justice issues, it is a delight to find a book that discusses a rather
Book Reviews innovative approach and offers evidence for its effectiveness. The idea of intensive supervision is an important one. For example, I have pointed out that, based on my work with sex offenders, none of them are fully cured, and thus they need supervision and treatment after they leave institutions (Eisenman, 1991b). This book extends the idea to include a wide range of high-risk juveniles on probation or parole. After an introduction by the editor, there are three sections of unnumbered chapters: Part I is An Overview of Juvenile Intensive Supervision and consists of three chapters, Part II is Programming Issues and Specialized Approaches in Juvenile Intensive Supervision, and consists of six chapters, while Part III is Evaluation of Juvenile Intensive Supervision, consisting of five chapters. Unfortunately, the book has no index. But, because it consists of intelligent chapters in a very important area, this book is of great value. In his introduction, Armstrong points out that while adult programs tend to be limited to surveillance and supervision, intensive programs for juveniles often have a treatment component as well. In a chapter titled "Intervention with Juvenile Offenders: Recent and Long-Term Changes," Ted B. Palmer points out that in the early 1960s to early 1970s, there was confidence regarding the ability of people to change offenders. However, this confidence disappeared and was replaced by pessimism from 1975 to 1981, with limited but increasingly positive views after that. Although Palmer points out that multiproblem offenders are not necessarily "sick," it is wise, when planning programs for them, to take into account all kinds of possible problems they may have, including developmental problems, personal attitudes, and pressures from their environment. Thus, many interventions can be planned, even if the offender is not seen as neurotic or psychotic. A good example of a detailed intervention program is presented by Norman Skonovd and Wesley Krause in their chapter, "The Regional Youth Educational Facility: A Promising Short-Term Intensive Institutional and Aftercare Program for Juvenile Court Wards." They note that the pessimism of Martinson's
89
(1974) "nothing works" viewpoint can be questioned, since most of the evidence for the "nothing works" view compared one correctional program against another. What about comparing the program against a control group that receives nothing considered beneficial? Also, Martinson himself has become more optimistic in recent years, according to the authors. Programs can work if they have effective ingredients, and the Regional Youth Educational Facility incorporates treatment, education, training, and work experience. Without an explanation of how each of these is defined, suffice it to say that a multifaceted program would seem to have a greater chance for success than one which focused on only one aspect, such as treatment only or education only. And, in fact, Skonovd and Krause present data showing less recidivism, compared to the comparison groups. They say that they do not know exactly what aspect(s) of the program account for its success, but the program does everything from job training to assessing whether or not the ward has a visual problem. Such a thorough approach seems likely to lead to a greater likelihood of success than a program with a limited focus. It is easy to define people as deviant and try to forget about them by sending them to prison (Eisenman, 1991a). This may be what was happening in Lucas County, Ohio, as described by Richard G. Wiebush and Donna M. Hamparian in their chapter, "Variations in 'Doing' Juvenile Intensive Supervision: Programmatic Issues in Four Ohio Jurisdictions." Part of the motivation for Lucas County officials to look for alternatives to their usual way of doing things was the realization that while Lucas County is only the fifth largest of the six major metropolitan areas in Ohio, it led the state in commitments to state penal institutions. Thus, an alternative was sought. There are many problems in drawing up alternative programs. For example, status offenders are different from true criminal offenders, and they are often youth with many special needs. Cuyahoga County thus decided to exclude status offenders from the Intensive Supervision Programs, while Delaware County made the opposite decision, to
90
Book Reviews
include status offenders. It may be that Cuyahoga County decided to spend its resources attempting to reform those who are a threat to society, while the philosophy of Delaware County was to help those in need. The authors point out that an important issue is who decides whether or not a youth goes into the Intensive Supervision Program. Those who design a program may want only certain categories of offenders included, but courts or probation/parole agencies may include offenders they believe appropriate, if they have the power to do so. This can lead to jurisdictional and political conflicts. This kind of issue is addressed further by J. Fred Springer in "Selective Aftercare for Juvenile Parolees: Environment and Placement Decisions." What is supposed to happen, says Springer, can be influenced by what the actual personnel do, as opposed to what the program plans call for. Thus, the best-intentioned program may not live up to its ideals (Eisenman, in press). One value of this book is that it points out important issues one may not have thought about but which may be crucial for program effectiveness. For example, Christopher Baird, in "Intensive Supervision Programs for HighRisk Juveniles: Critical Issues of Program Evaluation," points out that intensive supervision programs must result in diverting youth from institutions if they are to be considered successful. Otherwise, they represent an additional expenditure and may be seen as not cost effective. But if they keep youth out of institutions, then all the good things they do may be allowed to continue because the intensive supervision programs are saving money. Saving money for the state may be a crucial component of the program, as pointed out by William H. Barton and Jeffrey A. Butts in "Intensive Supervision Alternatives for Adjudicated Juveniles." Even though recidivism was not reduced, the community programs saved the state of Michigan nine million dollars over the four years of the evaluation, since the youth were not in state institutions. While a failure to reduce recidivism is disappointing and not as optimistic
a finding as the findings of Skonovd and Krause, the money savings are, nevertheless, quite important, especially in these times of budget problems faced by all levels of government. This is an important book. We need to look beyond the usual ways of doing things and see if intensive supervision experiences can result in a better approach, at least for those seen as qualifying for such programs. There are many important issues: who should be sent to such programs, how should the programs be run, how is discharge or success determined, and so forth. However, intensive programs need support. I believe that the reason some programs work with offenders is that they have intensive, multiple sources of intervention. Thus, Henggeler and Borduin (1990) reported a multifaceted approach, which was successful in dealing with behavior problems in children and adolescents. The volume reviewed here contributes to helping us understand how interventions with highrisk youth can be successful. All the answers are not in, by a long shot, but books like the present one provide an important step along the road to success. REFERENCES Eisenman, R. (in press). Creativity and anti-creativity in a prison: An organizational study. Creative Child
and Adult Quarterly. (1991a). From crime to creativity: Psychological and social factors in deviance. Dubuque, IA:
- -
Kendall/Hunt. - (1991b). Monitoring and postconfinement treatment of sex offenders: An urgent need. Psychol Rep 69: 1089-90. Henggeler, S. W., and Borduin, C. M. (1990). Family
therapy and beyond: A multisystemic approach to treating the behavior problems of children and adolescents. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. Martinson, R. (1974). What works? Questions and answers about prison reform. Pub Interest 35: 22-54.
Russell Eisenman Department of Psychology McNeese State University Lake Charles, Louisiana 70609-1895