The crime prevention value of hot spots policing

This paper reviews the available research evidence on the effectiveness of hot spots policing programs in reducing crime and disorder. The research identified five randomized controlled experiments and four non-equivalent control group quasi-experiments evaluating the effects of hot spots policing interventions on crime. Seven of nine selected evaluations reported noteworthy crime and disorder reductions. Meta-analyses of the randomized experiments revealed statistically significant mean effect sizes favoring hot spots policing interventions in reducing citizen calls for service in treatment places relative to control places. When immediate spatial displacement was measured, it was very limited and unintended crime prevention benefits were associated with the hot spots policing programs. The results of this review suggest that hot spots policing is an effective crime prevention strategy.     

The effectiveness of drug treatment programs in reducing criminal behavior: a meta-analysis

The main aim of this paper is to assess the effectiveness of drug treatment programs in reducing criminal behavior. The research is based on a systematic review and meta-analysis of evaluations of drug treatment programs. The research investigated various drug treatment programs including methadone treatment, therapeutic communities, post-release supervision for drug-misusing offenders, and drug courts, and focused on drug treatment programs that were primarily concerned with heroin, crack and cocaine misuse. The main outcome variable analyzed was reoffending following treatment as measured by self-reports or official records. The study was based on a meta-analysis of 28 evaluations of drug treatment programs. The meta-analysis involved calculating individual effect sizes for each study and weighted mean effect sizes for groups of studies. The mean odds of offending following treatment were significantly lower among clients of the drug treatment programs than among the comparison groups. However, the results varied by type of program, type of evaluation methods used, and characteristics of clients.     

Consumer Preference Programs for Individuals Who Are Homeless and Have Psychiatric Disabilities: A Drop-In Center and a Supported Housing Program

We illustrate Fairweather's approach to Experimental Social Innovation and Dissemination with two experimental studies of programs to reduce homelessness for 168 and 225 people with mental illness and often substance abuse. Literally homeless participants were randomly assigned to programs that emphasized consumer choice or to the usual continuum of care, in which housing and services are contingent on sobriety and progress in treatment. A drop-in center that eliminated barriers to access to services was more successful than control programs in reducing homelessness, but after 24 months only 38% of participants had moved to community housing. A subsequent apartment program, in which individuals in the experimental condition moved to subsidized apartments directly from the street, with services under their control, had 79% in stable housing (compared to 27% in the control group) at the end of 6 months. Groups in this study did not differ on substance abuse or psychosocial outcomes.     

A review of teen-tot programs: comprehensive clinical care for young parents and their children

Comprehensive clinical programs for teenage mothers and their children, also known as teen-tot programs, have been a promising intervention to improve outcomes of teenage childbearing and parenting. However, much remains unknown regarding the efficacy of such programs. We reviewed four published evaluations of programs that provided medical care, counseling, contraception, guidance for parenting, and assistance with staying in school. The evaluations reported moderate success in preventing repeat pregnancies, helping teen mothers continue their education, and improving teen and infant health over 6 to 18 months. However, the evaluations had limitations that may have reduced or accentuated observed effectiveness. Teen-tot programs will continue to face the challenges of sustaining adequate long-term interventions and evaluations, and reducing the high attrition rate among program participants. It is concluded that increased support and funding for teen-tot programs and more complete evaluations are warranted.     

A comparative evaluation of parent-training interventions for families of chronic delinquents

Fifty-five families of chronically offending delinquents were randomly assigned to parent-training treatment or to service traditionally provided by the juvenile court and community. The families in the parent-training group received an average of 44.8 hours of professional contact (23.3 hours of which were phone contacts), and each control group family received treatment estimated at more than 50 hours on the average. Comparisons of police contact data at baseline and subsequent years for the two groups showed that subjects in both groups demonstrated reduced rates of offending during the followup years. The finding most relevant was significant treatment-by-time effect for offense rates, with most of this effect accounted for by a greater reduction in serious crimes for the experimental group during the treatment year, and a similar reduction of the community control group occurring in the first of three followup years. These early decrements in offense rates persisted during followup for both groups. Throughout the study, boys in the experimental group spent significantly less time in institutional settings than did boys in the control group. Parent training had a significant impact, but the reduction in offending was produced at very high emotional cost to staff. Although it is clear that this population requires substantial treatment resources, this study underscores the need for more work on prevention.Research for this paper was supported by grant MH 37938 from the Center for Studies of Antisocial and Violent Behavior, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), U.S. Public Health Service (PHS). The writing was supported in part by grants MH 17126 and MH 37940 from the same Center, grant DA 05304 from the National Institute of Drug Abuse, U.S. PHS., and grant MH 38730 from the Child and Adolescent Disorders Research Branch, NIMH, U.S. PHS. The authors gratefully acknowledge the enduring commitment of the treatment staff that made this study possible: Patricia Chamberlain, Marion Forgatch, and Kate Kavanagh.     

Effectiveness of <Reasoning and rehabilitation> in reducing reoffending

This article aims to review the effectiveness of the program in reducing recidivism. Nineteen evaluations (involving 32 separate comparisons) were located in which experimental and control groups were compared. A meta-analysis showed that, overall, there was a significant 14% decrease in recidivism for program participants compared to controls. This program was effective in Canada and the United Kingdom but not in the United States. It was effective in community and institutional settings, whether or not it was given on a voluntary basis, and for low-risk and high-risk offenders. However, the program was more effective in older studies than in more recent evaluations.     

Talking About Safe Sex: The Role of Expectations and Experience1

We examined how affective expectations and objective experience influenced female college students' (N= 69) evaluations of discussions of safe‐sex practices and willingness to engage in future discussions. Participants interacted with a confident male confederate (positive experience) or a nervous one (negative experience). Positive experiences produced more positive evaluations and greater willingness to participate in the future. Expectations were manipulated after the discussion by telling participants that discussions became easier over time (positive expectations) or telling participants nothing (neutral expectations). Independent of experience, positive expectations also resulted in more positive evaluations and greater willingness. Similar results were obtained 2 weeks later. Findings are discussed in terms of previous studies of affective expectations and implications for safe‐sex education programs.     

Parent Programs for Reducing Adolescent’s Antisocial Behavior and Substance Use: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Two theoretically based parent training programs, delivered in real-world settings by the social services, were examined in this randomized controlled trial for effectiveness in reducing adolescents’ antisocial behavior and substance use. Two hundred and thirty-seven (237) adolescents in ages between 12 and 18 and their parents were assigned to one of two programs or to a wait-list control condition. The programs were the nine weekly group sessions program Comet 12–18 (Swedish Parent Management Training Program) and the six weekly ParentSteps (Swedish shortened version by Strengthening Families Program 10–14). Outcome measures were antisocial behavior, substance use, and delinquency, and psychosocial dysfunction. Data based on adolescents’ and parents’ ratings of the adolescents’ problem behavior at baseline and 6 months later were analyzed with repeated measures ANVOA, Logistic regression, and Kruskal–Wallis H test. The results showed that parents’ ratings of adolescents’ antisocial behaviors decreased significantly over time, but no time by group effect emerged. No program effects were found in the adolescents’ self-reported antisocial behavior, delinquency, or psychosocial functioning. A threefold risk of illicit drug use was found in both intervention groups. The results suggest that neither Comet nor ParentSteps had beneficial effects on adolescent’s antisocial or delinquent behavior, or on alcohol use. The only significant group difference found was a threefold risk of drug use in the intervention adolescents at follow-up, but for several reasons this finding should be interpreted with caution. Trial registration number: ISRCTN76141538.     

A systematic meta-review of evaluations of youth violence prevention programs: Common and divergent findings from 25 years of meta-analyses and systematic reviews

Violence among youth is a pervasive public health problem. In order to make progress in reducing the burden of injury and mortality that result from youth violence, it is imperative to identify evidence-based programs and strategies that have a significant impact on violence. There have been many rigorous evaluations of youth violence prevention programs. However, the literature is large, and it is difficult to draw conclusions about what works across evaluations from different disciplines, contexts, and types of programs. The current study reviews the meta-analyses and systematic reviews published prior to 2009 that synthesize evaluations of youth violence prevention programs. This meta-review reports the findings from 37 meta-analyses and 15 systematic reviews; the included reviews were coded on measures of the social ecology, prevention approach, program type, and study design. A majority of the meta-analyses and systematic reviews were found to demonstrate moderate program effects. Meta-analyses yielded marginally smaller effect sizes compared to systematic reviews, and those that included programs targeting family factors showed marginally larger effects than those that did not. In addition, there are a wide range of individual/family, program, and study moderators of program effect sizes. Implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

How Do Family-Focused Prevention Programs Work? A Review of Mediating Mechanisms Associated with Reductions in Youth Antisocial Behaviors

The development and evaluation of family-focused preventive interventions has grown significantly in recent decades, but the degree to which these interventions produce anticipated improvements in the family environment, and the extent to which such changes are associated with reductions in youth antisocial behaviors (ASB), is unclear. This article seeks to answer these questions by reviewing evidence from tests of mediation conducted in evaluations of family-focused interventions. Interventions are drawn from family-focused interventions rated as Model Plus, Model, or Promising on the Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development Web site (http://www.colorado.edu/cspv/blueprints/) based on evidence of their effectiveness in reducing child externalizing behaviors, substance use, and/or delinquency. Of the 19 such interventions listed on Blueprints, seven programs (37 %) were evaluated using mediation analyses which met study criteria. Two-thirds (67 %) of these analyses indicated significant improvements in the targeted family processes for intervention versus control group participants. Over half (62 %) of all tests of mediation were statistically significant and indicated that improvements in the family environment were associated with reductions in ASB. The results support prior theoretical and empirical literature identifying the family as an important context for preventing ASB and promoting healthy youth development. The findings also provide information that can be used to refine current family-focused interventions in order to increase their efficiency and potency, and to develop new interventions in order to expand the number and types of families who can benefit from such services.     

Crosswords to Computers: A Critical Review of Popular Approaches to Cognitive Enhancement

Cognitive enhancement strategies have gained recent popularity and have the potential to benefit clinical and non-clinical populations. As technology advances and the number of cognitively healthy adults seeking methods of improving or preserving cognitive functioning grows, the role of electronic (e.g., computer and video game based) cognitive training becomes more relevant and warrants greater scientific scrutiny. This paper serves as a critical review of empirical evaluations of publically available electronic cognitive training programs. Many studies have found that electronic training approaches result in significant improvements in trained cognitive tasks. Fewer studies have demonstrated improvements in untrained tasks within the trained cognitive domain, non-trained cognitive domains, or on measures of everyday function. Successful cognitive training programs will elicit effects that generalize to untrained, practical tasks for extended periods of time. Unfortunately, many studies of electronic cognitive training programs are hindered by methodological limitations such as lack of an adequate control group, long-term follow-up and ecologically valid outcome measures. Despite these limitations, evidence suggests that computerized cognitive training has the potential to positively impact one’s sense of social connectivity and self-efficacy.     

A teen court evaluation with a therapeutic jurisprudence perspective

Teen court defendants were assessed on several attitudinal measures when they entered and when they completed their teen court program. Teen court volunteers and high school civics students in a control group were assessed on the same measures at two points in time that approximated the length of teen court involvement for defendants. Re-offense rates for defendants were assessed. In addition, defendants and their parents completed satisfaction surveys. The teen court experience did not significantly impact the attitudes and beliefs of either the defendants or the volunteers. The re-offense rate for defendants was 13%, which is similar to other teen court programs and less than the re-offense rate for the general diversion program in the county that was the target of the study. Since this teen court selected youth with the least serious delinquency activity (primarily shoplifting), conclusions about the program's effectiveness in reducing further offending cannot be made. Defendants and their parents reported high levels of satisfaction with their teen court experience but defendants became more alienated from institutional authority. This study did not support the teen court experience as having a generally beneficial impact on defendants or volunteers that would be expected from a therapeutic jurisprudence perspective.     

Family-based obesity treatment, then and now: twenty-five years of pediatric obesity treatment.

OBJECTIVE: Family-based treatments for pediatric obesity were developed over 25 years ago. Over that time, youth have become more obese and the environment more obesiogenic, which may influence efficacy of pediatric weight control. Mixed-effects regression models were used to compare the efficacy of programs initiated 20 to 25 years ago to current programs through 24-month follow-up, as well as to reanalyze 10-year outcomes of previous research using contemporary measures and analytic strategies. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: z-BMI and percent overweight. RESULTS: Results showed significant reductions over time, with no differences in z-BMI change for older versus contemporary studies. Age was a predictor of z-BMI up to 24 months, with younger children showing larger change. Mixed-effects regression models replicated previous long-term effects of family-based interventions. Gender was a predictor of long-term z-BMI change, with girls benefiting more over time than did boys. CONCLUSION: The efficacy of the family-based behavioral approach to treating pediatric obesity replicates over a 25-year period. Challenges in evaluating treatment effects over time are discussed. Ideas for studying choice of treatments that vary in effect size and for strengthening family-based behavioral treatments are noted.     

EVALUATION OF AN INTERVIEWEE SKILLS TRAINING PROGRAM IN A NATURAL FIELD EXPERIMENT

The purpose of this study was to provide an evaluation of an interviewee skills training program in a field setting using a broad sample of interviewers, jobs, and candidates. The training program ( n = 158) derived its content from previous literature and used multiple instructional techniques. An experimental design was employed with a self-study (placebo control) group ( n = 140), random assignment, and many levels of evaluation criteria. Measures exhibited acceptable reliability, and statistical power was high for all analyses. Results indicated that class members responded positively to the program and demonstrated substantial learning. Interviewer evaluations of behavior failed to distinguish between experimental groups, however, and no differences were observed in job offers. Furthermore, no differences were observed between study participants and nonparticipants ( n = 174) in terms of interview behavior and job offers. This study illustrates the danger of relying solely on reaction or learning criteria in the evaluation of training programs. Several explanations are offered for the findings.     

The Effect of Rational-Emotive Parent Education on the Stress of Mothers of Young Children with Down Syndrome

Parents of children with disabilities are likely to experience more stress than parents of normal children. This study assessed the effectiveness of a Rational-Emotive Parent Education Program (REPE) in reducing parental stress. The REPE program focused only on core irrationalities to determine the efficacy of elegant disputation. Mothers of young children attending an early intervention centre for Down syndrome were randomly allocated to three groups, experimental, REPE, n = 21; a comparative-treatment control, Applied Behaviour Analysis, (ABA) n = 17; and a no-treatment control, n = 16. A pretest post-test design was used with there being eight seminars of both the REPE and ABA programs. On both the Profile of Mood States and the Parenting Stress Index (Parent Domain) totals the REPE group showed significant reductions in stress compared with both control groups. The results from some subscales and single items suggested that the early intervention centre program also reduced stress. The REPE program using elegant disputation reduced parental stress.     

Suicide Prevention in Australian Aboriginal Communities: A Review of Past and Present Programs

A review of Aboriginal suicide prevention programs were conducted to highlight promising projects and strategies. A content analysis of gray literature was conducted to identify interventions reported to have an impact in reducing suicidal rates and behaviors. Most programs targeted the whole community and were delivered through workshops, cultural activities, or creative outlets. Curriculums included suicide risk and protective factors, warning signs, and mental health. Many programs were poorly documented and evaluations did not include suicidal outcomes. Most evaluations considered process variables. Results from available outcome evaluations suggest that employing a whole of community approach and focusing on connectedness, belongingness and cultural heritage may be of benefit. Despite the challenges, there is a clear need to evaluate outcomes if prevention is to be progressed.     

Priming involuntary autobiographical memories in the lab

Involuntary autobiographical memories (IAMs) are recollections of personal past that frequently and spontaneously occur in daily life. Initial studies by Mace (2005) showed that deliberately reminiscing about a certain lifetime period (e.g., high school) significantly increased the number of different IAMs from the same period in subsequent days, suggesting that priming may play a significant role in the retrieval of IAMs in everyday life. In the present study, we used a modified experimental paradigm, originally used by Schlagman and Kvavilashvili (2008), to study IAMs under well-controlled laboratory conditions. Participants completed a monotonous vigilance task twice and reported the occurrence of any spontaneous thoughts that were later classed as IAMs or other thoughts. Priming was manipulated by having experimental participants reminiscing about high school period between the two vigilance tasks and control participants playing simple games. Results showed that participants in the experimental group reported IAMs relating to high school period more frequently during the second vigilance task than those in the control group. In the experimental group, the number of high school memories was marginally higher in the second vigilance task compared to the first vigilance task with the medium effect size, but this within subjects effect was not significant in the control group. Finally, priming also enhanced the retrieval of more remote IAMs in the experimental group compared to the control group. These results suggest that priming may play a significant role in the activation and recall of IAMs and open up interesting avenues for future research.     

Pro-criminal attitudes,intervention, and recidivism

We review the recent research literature on pro-criminal attitudes (PCAs) as a causal factor of recidivism with a focus on studies on the effectiveness of offender treatment programs targeting PCAs to prevent recidivism. The main conclusions that can be derived from the literature are: (1) the evidence supports the hypothesis that PCAs are related to reoffending; (2) most investigated offender treatment programs tend to reduce PCAs, although the general lack of adequate control group designs does not rule out alternative explanations for this reduction; and (3) there is no conclusive empirical evidence that intervention programs designed to reduce PCAs are effective in reducing recidivism. Empirical research in this area lacks the theoretical and methodological rigor to test causal models of the influence of treatment on reducing PCAs, and effects of PCAs on recidivism. Limitations of the empirical evidence are related to inadequate research designs and/or suboptimal data analysis strategies. Recommendations concerning optimized research designs and data analysis strategies that are likely to provide more conclusive evidence on the relation of PCAs, PCA treatment, and recidivism are given.     

Effect of physical fitness program in the workplace

This study examined the effect of employee's participation in a physical fitness program in an industrial workplace on: job satisfaction, body image, and sickdays, using a pre-post matched control group design. Experimental and control groups (n's=23) were measured on the three dependent variables at the start of the fitness program and six months later. Analyses of covariance showed significantly higher job satisfaction, more positive body image, and fewer sickdays in the experimental group. Benefits of preventative health programs are discussed.Presented at 93rd Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association at Los Angeles, California, August 1985.     

The Impact of Experienced Emotion on Evaluative Judgments: The Effects of Age and Emotion Regulation Style

ABSTRACT

Adults aged from 24 to 79 were exposed to four commercial advertisements within the context of television programs designed to induce either a positive or negative mood. Although age was associated with memory for the content of the commercials, it did not moderate the impact of mood on evaluations of the advertized products. Instead, participants who reported engaging in expressive suppression as a common emotion regulation strategy were more likely to make evaluations that were biased by moods than those individuals who reported low use of this strategy. The results suggest that the maintenance of emotion regulation ability in later adulthood may help people control certain affective influences on thought.