NCJ Number
53879
Date Published
1972
Length
113 pages
Annotation
THE IMPACT OF GROUP COUNSELING AND ROLE PLAYING ON BOTH SELECTED PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS AND RECIDIVISM FOR 38 INMATES ELIGIBLE FOR PAROLE AND TRANSFERRED TO THE PRERELEASE CENTER FOR MEN IS ASSESSED.
Abstract
THE PRERELEASE CENTER WAS ESTABLISHED TO GIVE MEN PAROLED FROM THE MISSISSIPPI STATE PENITENTIARY A 3-WEEK PREPARATION PERIOD FOR THEIR RELEASE. AN EVALUATION IN 1967 FOUND THAT ONLY 11 PERCENT OF MEN RECEIVING THESE PRERELEASE SERVICES WERE RETURNED TO PRISON, COMPARED TO 16 PERCENT FOR THOSE NOT RECEIVING SUCH SERVICES. THIS STUDY FOCUSES ON THE EFFECTS THAT GROUP COUNSELING AND PSYCHODRAMA (ROLE-PLAYING) HAVE ON BOTH PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS, AS MEASURED BY THE KAHN TEST OF SYMBOL ARRANGEMENT, AND RECIDIVISM. ALL MEN ADMITTED TO THE CENTER DURING OCTOBER, 1971, WERE ASSIGNED TO ONE OF FOUR GROUPS: THE FIRST HAD GROUP COUNSELING ALONE, THE SECOND PSYCHODRAMA ALONE, THE THIRD BOTH, AND THE FOURTH, A CONTROL GROUP, RECEIVED NOTHING. RESULTS OF THE KAHN TESTS ADMINISTERED BEFORE AND AFTER TREATMENT AND AFTER A 90-DAY WAIT PERIOD ARE EXAMINED IN DETAIL. IT WAS FOUND THAT THE F RATIOS WERE NOT SIGNIFICANT AT THE 5 PERCENT LEVEL. DIFFERENCES IN RECIDIVISM AMONG THE GROUPS WERE COMPARED BY CHI SQUARE ANALYSIS; THERE WERE NO STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES. THE EMOTIONAL CLIMATE OF THE PRERELEASE CENTER IS DISCUSSED IN DETAIL. IT IS CONCLUDED THAT THE MEN BROUGHT PRISON HOSTILITIES WITH THEM AND THAT THE TREATMENT PERIOD WAS TOO SHORT TO MAKE ANY MEANINGFUL IMPACT UPON PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS. TABLES PRESENT STUDY DATA. A BIBLIOGRAPHY IS APPENDED. (GLR)