Citation

Friendship C, Blud L, Erikson M, Travers R, Thornton D. Leg. Crim. Psychol. 2003; 8(1): 103-114.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2003, British Psychological Society, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1348/135532503762871273

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Purpose. The effectiveness of prison-based cognitive-behavioural treatment programmes was evaluated using reconviction as the outcome measure.Method. Reconviction rates were compared between two groups of adult male offenders who were serving a custodial sentence of 2 years or more in Her Majesty's Prison Service, England and Wales. The treatment group (N =667) consisted of offenders who had voluntarily participated in one of two treatment programmes that targeted 'cognitive deficits' related to offending behaviour. The comparison group (N =1,801) was made up of offenders who had not participated in the treatment programme but were "matched" to the treatment group on a number of empirically relevant variables.Results. Treatment produced a robust reduction in the probability of reconviction (p < .001) when other relevant variables were controlled for. For treated offenders, the percentage point reduction in reconviction was 14% in medium-lowrisk offenders and 11% in medium-high-risk offenders.Conclusion. These outcome results demonstrate that the principles of effective practice in the field of offender rehabilitation, which were identified through meta-analytical research predominately in North America, can be applied to a UK offender population to similar effect.

Language: en