Critical Perspectives on Effective Intervention There are four general principles of effective intervention that have become organizing concepts of community corrections. They have stimulated what has become known as the “what works” movement. Prepare a

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Week 4 Instructor Guidance

Sean Grier

All Sections

CRJ 201: Introduction to Criminal Justice

Week 4 Assignments:

ReadChapters 8 & 9 in Introduction to Criminal Justice

This week your reading will focus on corrections in particular, which is perhaps the largest component of

the

criminal justice system. As you will notice, corrections begin where the courts end. There are many

different aspects of corrections, and not all corrections involve actual incarceration. Rather, there is

awide range of corrections, including probation and parole. You will be expected to use this information

and your own perspective in this week’s Written Assignment and Discussions.

This week you will need to participate one discussion forum. Create an initial post by Day 3 that

demonstrates a thorough understanding of the material. Respond to at leasttwo peers by Day 7 of the

week. Be sure to fully address the prompt in order to earn full points!

You have been assigned to a section for this discussion. Prior to beginning work on this discussion,

explore the philosophies behind four approaches to criminal sanctions—retribution, deterrence,

incapacitation, and rehabilitation—as considered in the Wright (2012) text. In addition, please review the

assigned website, Bureau of Justice Statistics (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

(https://bjs.gov/) , and read Contemporary Prison Overcrowding: Short-Term Fixes to a

Perpetual Problem (Pitts et al., 2014). You will also consider an application for life course theory in

criminology relevant to criminal sanctions. Please review resources referenced in Week 1, the Messer,

Patten, and Candela (2016) article pages seven through nine, and/or content in the Salvatore (2017)

article pages one through two, which respectively summarize life source theory in criminology.

Respond to the prompts within your assigned section. In an initial post of at least 250 words in length,

address the following:

Section 1 – Students whose last name begins with the letters A-G

• Define retribution. What is the philosophical basis for retribution?

• Interpret how at least one constitutional principle relevant to social and criminal justice relates to

retribution.

• Describe how life source theory in criminology could either challenge or support retribution.

Section 2 - Students whose last names begin with the letters H-K

• Define general and specific deterrence. What is the philosophical basis for deterrence?

• Interpret how at least one constitutional principles relevant to social and criminal justice relates to

deterrence.

• Describe how life source theory in criminology could either challenge or support retribution

deterrence.

Section 3 - Students whose last names begin with the letters L-R

• Define incapacitation. What is the philosophical basis for incapacitation?

• Interpret how at least one constitutional principle relevant to social and criminal justice relates to

rehabilitation.

• Describe how life source theory in criminology could either challenge or support incapacitation.

Section 4 - Students whose last names begin with the letters S –Z

• Define rehabilitation. What is the philosophical basis for rehabilitation?

• Interpret how at least one constitutional principle relevant to social and criminal justice relates to

rehabilitation.

• Describe how life source theory in criminology could either challenge or support rehabilitation.

All students

• Of the four approaches, which do you think is the most effective framework for criminal sanction?

Why? Make sure to substantiate your reasons with citations to scholarly or credible sources.

Guided Response: Review several of your peers’ posts within each section other than your own and

respond to at least one of your peers’ posts from each of those sections (totaling three classmates) by

Day 7. Responses to your peers should be substantive, at least 100 words in length, and provide

recommendations to extend their thinking. Support your claims with examples from the required material

(s) and/or scholarly resources, and properly cite any references. The Scholarly, Peer Reviewed, and

Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

(https://content.bridgepointeducation.com/curriculum/file/e5359309-7d3c-4a21-a410-

44d59303ccef/1/Scholarly%20Peer-Reviewed%20and%20Other%20Credible%20Sources.pdf) table offers

additional guidance on appropriate source types. Also, include at least one follow-up question in each of

your response posts about your peers’ initial posting.

Next, respond to your peers’ responses to you! This is unlike the other discussions for this course in that

you must respond to those who have responded to you. Simply respond to their follow-up question in a

complete and substantial way. It is then the responsibility of each student to answer the question asked

of you in the secondary response. If, for some reason, you are not asked a question in a secondary

response by Day 6, you may answer a question that someone asked to another one of your classmates.

Remember that this is a discussion. If a classmate or your instructor asks you a question, it is your

responsibility to respond. You are encouraged to post your required replies earlier in the week to

promote more meaningful and interactive discourse in this discussion forum. Continue to monitor the

discussion forum until 11:59 p.m. on Day 7 of the week, and respond with robust dialogue to anyone

who replies to your initial post.

Critical Perspectives on Effective Intervention

There are four general principles of effective intervention that have become organizing concepts of

community corrections. They have stimulated what has become known as the “what works” movement.

Prepare a digital slide presentation outlining the four general principles of the "what works" movement.

For this assignment, you will prepare five digital slides that consider perspectives on the potential merits

and limitations associated with each of the four general principles. It is important to develop the ability to

frame an approach to content in a digital slide format. A digital slide format provides an opportunity to

succinctly summarize points and to organize your thoughts in a compelling and coherent manner. Prior

to beginning work on this assignment, please complete the assigned readings in the Wright (2012)

text, Contemporary Prison Overcrowding: Short-Term Fixes to a Perpetual Problem (Pitts et al.,

2014) and Assessing the Effectiveness of Correctional Sanctions (Cochran et al., 2014). In addition,

please review the website Bureau of Justice Statistics (Links to an external site.)Links to an

external site. (https://bjs.gov/) . Also, please consider the recommended website resources.

In your slide presentation, using at least two scholarly, peer-reviewed, or credible sources in addition to

the course text

• Analyze critical perspectives on the merits and drawbacks of each of the four general principles.

• Interpret constitutional principles for social and criminal justice that relate to at least one of the four

general principles.

• Apply knowledge of cultural sensitivity and diversity awareness to a program, policy, or practice in

corrections relevant to at least one of the four general principles.

• Explain a criminal justice issue within the system of corrections relevant to at least one of the four

general principles.

Consider using Q for your research and to access writing supports, and tutoring services available to

you. See the Guide to Installing and Using Q (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

(https://content.bridgepointeducation.com/curriculum/file/dd00f749-7449-469c-9bd3-

1e6e269bd895/1/Guide%20to%20Installing%20and%20Using%20Q%20for%20Success.pdf) for more

information.

*Note: To access the Ashford University Library directly, click on the Writing Center and Library links in

your left navigation. Watch the Database Search Tips (Links to an external site.)Links to an external

site. (https://ashford.mediaspace.kaltura.com/media/Database+Search+Tips/0_vj8u97hi) video for more

and see Searching the Ashford University Librarydocument for assignment-specific search tips.

Presenting engaging multimedia content also improves learner retention of information. Include visual

enhancements in your presentation. Include appropriate images, a consistent font, appropriate

animations, and transitions from content piece-to-content piece and slide-to-slide. (Images should be

cited in APA format as outlined by the Ashford Writing Center guide to Tables, Images, &

Appendices (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

(http://writingcenter.ashford.edu/tables-images-appendices) .) You may wish to use the Where to Get

Free (and Legal) Images guide (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

(https://content.bridgepointeducation.com/curriculum/file/5618416c-a94d-4ad6-948d-

89fe46c74674/1/MSCJ%20Where%20to%20Get%20Free%20Images.pdf) for assistance with accessing

freely available public domain and/or Creative Commons licensed images. It is recommended that you

access Garr Reynolds Top Ten Slide Tips (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

(http://www.garrreynolds.com/preso-tips/design/) and Simple Rules for Better PowerPoint

Presentations (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

(http://www.gcflearnfree.org/powerpoint-tips/simple-rules-for-better-powerpoint-presentations) , which

provide useful assistance with creating successful PowerPoint presentations.

The Critical Perspectives on Effective Intervention presentation:

• Must be five slides in length (not including title and references slides) and formatted according to

APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center’sHow to Make a PowerPoint

Presentation (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

(http://writingcenter.ashford.edu/how-make-powerpoint-presentation)

• Must include a separate title slide with the following:

◦ Title of presentation

◦ Student’s name

◦ Course name and number

◦ Instructor’s name

◦ Date submitted

• Must use at least two scholarly, peer-reviewed, or credible sources in addition to the course text.

◦ TheScholarly, Peer Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.)Links

to an external site. (https://content.bridgepointeducation.com/curriculum/file/e5359309-7d3c-

4a21-a410-44d59303ccef/1/Scholarly%20Peer-

Reviewed%20and%20Other%20Credible%20Sources.pdf) table offers additional guidance on

appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate

for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the

appropriateness of a specific source for a particular slide presentation.

• Must document any information used from sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing

Center’sCiting Within Your Paper (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

(http://writingcenter.ashford.edu/citing-within-your-paper)

• Must include a separate references slide that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the

Ashford Writing Center. See theFormatting Your References List (Links to an external site.)

Links to an external site. (http://writingcenter.ashford.edu/format-your-reference-list) resource in

the Ashford Writing Center for specifications.

Hello class! Welcome to Week Four of Introduction to Criminal Justice.

Corrections

As I have already noted, corrections is perhaps the largest and most researched component of the

criminal justice system. Wright (2012) noted that in past times, correctional philosophies have changed

with the opinions of politicians in power. This is still true in some instances, and you can notice a

distinct difference between conservative philosophies and liberal philosophies. However, there has

been a dramatic push in contemporary criminal justice to move away from this erratic practice. Rather,

academia has made a persuasive argument to move the field of criminal justice to a more evidence-

based system. This is why you will repeatedly hear the term ‘evidence-based;’ because it is an

extremely important concept to modern criminal justice. This is a good thing, since it prevents policy

makers from making decisions based on a “hunch” that their idea will work.

One of the reasons that the field of corrections has been so thoroughly researched is because it costs

the American taxpayers billions of dollars per year. Therefore, it is important to find methods that can

rehabilitate offenders and put them back into society as productive citizens. Sadly, one of the biggest

problems with corrections is the stigma that is associated with incarceration. For instance, ex-offenders

have extreme difficulty finding good wage earning jobs after being released from prison. Since they

cannot find a good job, they cannot support themselves. Since they cannot support themselves, they

end up returning to a criminal lifestyle. This, in turn, causes them to get re-arrested and sent back into

prison. Therefore, this is one area that should be researched, to find ways to overcome this stigma and

allow ex-convicts to find decent jobs. I will start working on my dissertation study within the next month,

and this is the topic I have chosen to study. I will be studying the impact of faith-based correctional

programs on increasing the likelihood of ex-offender employment. I hope to discover a method that will

increase their ability to gain employment and hopefully lower rates of recidivism.

A question you should ask yourself as you go through this week’s assigned reading is how you

personally feel about corrections. Take a hard look at the different philosophies and see where you

stand. But, be sure to pay attention to the empirical evidence surrounding a philosophy. If the evidence

is against what you “feel” then be prepared to allow your position to be changed. For instance, I was

personally been supportive of capital punishment (death penalty) prior to studying criminal justice;

however, after reading an extensive amount of evidence on the subject, I have come to the conclusion it

is not necessary.

Let me explain. Most people do not know this, but it costs more to put a person to death than it does to

sentence them to life in prison. The reason for this is because a capital punishment verdict is grounds

for an immediate appeal. This means not only did the initial trial most likely take years, but now there

will be a several year appeal process on top of it. During this time lawyers must be paid for thousands

of man-hours, judges must hear hours of arguments, and on top of that, juries must be paid to listen.

The total comes out to a far greater price than just initially sentencing a person to life in prison and

paying for their food and lodging for the rest of their life. Still, many have argued that the death penalty

holds a particular ‘deterrent’ effect to would be murderers. According to Chalfin, Haviland, & Raphael

(2012), this conclusion is debatable. The empirical evidence, for the most part, is inconclusive in either

direction. Still, it is a topic that is continually studied and one that should be thoroughly debated.

Opinions within society are mixed on the topic of capital punishment. Here is a short clip on capital

punishment that discusses this disparity:

Death Sentence: The Story of Capital Punishment

© Infobase. All Rights Reserved. Length: 59:17

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References

Chalfin, A., Haviland, A. M., & Raphael, S. (2012). What do panel studies tell us about a deterrent effect

of capital punishment? A critique of the literature. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 29(1), 5-43.

Wright, J. (2012). Introduction to Criminal Justice. Cincinnati, OH: Bridgepoint Education.

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