scared straight

Critique of the “Scared Straight Program” The program established in the 1970s, called Scared Straight is used throughout the United States as a means of deterring juvenile crime. This program consists of youth that are at risk visiting adult prisons, the youth then have contact with prisoners to hear about the life and reality of being locked up from inmates (Slowikowski, 2011). The programs can involve tours of the facility, living the life of a prisoner for a full day, aggressive “in-your-face” presentations by inmates, and one-on-one counseling. However well intentioned these prison visit programs may be, decades of research have shown that this approach is not only ineffective, but possibly harmful to youth (Slowikowski, 2011). Now there was a study done by Anthony Petrosino and researchers at the Campbell Collaboration analyzed results from nine Scared Straight Programs and found that such programs generally increased crime up to 28 percent in the experimental group when compared to a no-treatment control group (Slowikowski, 2011). In another analysis of juvenile prevention and treatment programs, Mark Lipsey of the Vanderbilt Institute for public Policy Studies found that youth who participate in Scared Straight and other similar deterrence programs have higher recidivism rates than youth in control groups (Slowikowski, 2011). Also there was a report done in 1997 presented to the U.S. Congress where there was 500 crime prevention evaluations and said the program “Scared Straight” is “what does not work” in preventing juvenile crime. Yet programs like “Scared Straight” are continuing to be used as an approach in the United States and throughout the world. On January 13, 2011, A&E Television Networks aired the first of a multiepisode series of reality shows called “Beyond Scared Straight” (Slowikowski, 2011). It had become the most watched show in the United States with having an audience of 3.7 million people (Sullivan, 2011). This then has