Attorney General Elect, Kamila Harris has announced that she plans to move aggressively to dramatically increase anger management, substance abuse treatment, GED preparation, job skills, counseling and a wide range of other rehabilitation programs. This will mark a shift away from warehousing of prisoners. This departure for California will increase the nationwide trend towards rehabilitation in jails and prisons.
The Canadian Bureau of Prisons was one of the first Criminal Justice Systems to recognize the value of anger management for violence prone inmates. The Bureau of Prisons conducted a 15- year study regarding the effectiveness of anger management for male and female prisoners. Here are some of the results of that study:
1. An effective anger management program must have a curriculum.
2. The curriculum must include client workbooks that contain all of the material needed to complete the course.
3. Handouts are not useful as they trivialize the importance of the course.
4. Pre and Post Tests are crucial in order to determine the success or lack of success of the course for each participant.
Living Skills "Anger Management Programming for Federal Inmates: An Effective Intervention" (C. Dowden et al., 1999, R-82).
Compared a matched sample of male federal offenders to an untreated comparison group. Matched on age, risk and major offence.
Average follow-up period of 1.5 years.
56 higher risk offenders who completed the Anger Management program showed a 69% reduction in non-violent recidivism (from 39.3% for the benchmark group to 12.5% in the program group) and an 86% reduction in violent recidivism (from 25% for the benchmark group to 3.6% in the program group).
The Canadian Bureau of Prisons has demonstrated in fifteen years of study that incarcerated defendants who are taught how to manage stress and anger using a cognitive behavior/emotional intelligence approach with client workbooks showed a 86% success rate. These skills are maintained when defendants are returned to their home communities. This longitudinal study reinforces the effectiveness of anger management.
In a more recent study conducted by Correctional Service in Canada (CSC), it was found out that inmate education results in lesser institutional behavior problems, pursuit of further education upon release from prison and increased chances of obtaining employment. Click here for more information:http://www.suite101.com/content/educational-p...
In summary, anger management is a profitable investment by the community in rehabilitation rather than a cost.
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