The Use of Reinforcement and Punishment on Incarcerated and Probated Substance-Abusing Juvenile Offenders

Abstract

The primary sentencing options for juvenile offenders are incarceration and probation into community-based rehabilitation programs. Each model relies on different behavioral principles, punishment and reinforcement respectively, to achieve the goals of the juvenile justice system, which include a decrease in rates of recidivism. Self-esteem has been found to be negatively correlated to criminal and substance abuse recidivism in past research. The current study sought to determine the differential effects of imprisonment and probation on self-esteem in a sample of 50 substance-abusing juvenile offenders, sentenced to one of the aforementioned adjudication options. Participants were group administered the Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventory and the Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory. The results indicated that the punishment (incarcerated) group obtained significantly higher scores on a scale measuring social self-esteem than the reinforcement (probation) group. The authors discuss theories that may help explain the current findings.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Battle, J. (1992). Manual for the Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventories (2nd ed.). Austin, TX: Pro-Ed.

Broome, K. M., Knight, K., Hiller, M. L., & Simpson, D. D. (1996). Drug treatment process indicators for probationers and prediction of recidivism. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 13(6), 487-491.

Broome, K. M., Knight, K., Joe, G. W., & Simpson, D. D. (1997). Structural models of antisocial behavior and during-treatment performance for probationers in a substance abuse treatment program. Structural Equation Modeling, 4(1), 37-51.

Greenwood, P. W. (1994). What works with juvenile offenders: A synthesis of the literature and experience. Federal Probation, 58, 63-67.

Holder, H. D., & Blose, J. O. (1992). The reduction of health care costs with alcoholism treatment: A 14-year longitudinal study. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 53(4), 293-302.

Hunter, G. C. (1994). Who’s really in charge of my life anyway? Locus of control and cognitive sub- stance abuse treatment in a federal prison. Journal of Rational-Emotive and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, 12(4), 219-227.

Irvin, D. M., & Maag, J. W. (1993). Substance abuse among adolescents: Implications for at-risk youth. Special Services in the Schools, 7, 39-64.

Johnson, B. D., Wish, E. D., Schmeidler, J., & Huizinga, D. (1991). Concentration of delinquent offending, serious drug involvement, and high delinquency rates. Journal of Drug Issues, 21, 205-229.

Marlatt, G. A., & Gordon, J. R. (Eds.). (1985). Relapse prevention. New York: Guilford.

10.

Mauser, E., VanStelle, K. R., & Moberg, D. P. (1994). The economic impact of diverting substanceabusing offenders into treatment. Crime and Delinquency, 40(4), 568-588.

11.

McCormick, R. A., & Smith, M. (1995). Aggression and hostility in substance abusers: The relation- ship to abuse patterns, coping style, and relapse triggers. Addictive Behaviors, 20(5), 555-562.

12.

McGuire, J., Broomfield, D., Robinson, C., & Rowson, B. (1995). Short-term effects of probation programs: An evaluative study. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 39(1), 23-42.

13.

Miller, G. A. (1985). Manual for the Substance Abuse Subtle Screening Inventory—(SASSI). Spencer, IN: The Spencer Evening World.

14.

Ortiz-Felix, M., Munoz, R., & Newcomb, M. D. (1994). The role of emotional distress in drug use among Latino adolescents. Journal of Child & Adolescent Substance Abuse, 3(4), 1-22.

15.

Rice, D. P., Kelman, S., & Miller, L. S. (1991). Estimates of economic costs of alcohol and drug abuse and mental illness, 1985 and 1988. Public Health Reports, 106(3), 280-292.

16.

Sims, B., & Jones, M. (1997). Predicting success or failure on probation: Factors associated with felony probation outcomes. Crime and Delinquency, 43(3), 314-327.

17.

Storms, M. D., & McCaul, K. D. (1976). Attribution processes and emotional exacerbation of dysfunctional behavior. In J. H. Harvey, W. Ickes, & R. F. Kidd (Eds.), New directions in attribution research (Vol. 1). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

18.

U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. (1992). A national report: Drugs, crime, and the justice system. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.

19.

U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. (1996). Sourcebook of Criminal justice statistics—1996. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.

20.

U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs. (1997). Preventing crime: What works, what doesn’t, what’s promising. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.

21.

Winters, K. C., Weller, C. L., & Meland, J. A. (1993). Extent of drug use among juvenile offenders. Journal of Drug Issues, 23, 515-524.