A Content Analysis of Prison Websites: Exploring Approaches to Rehabilitation in Latin America

Across much of Latin America, prison systems are characterized as having significantly high incarceration and overcrowding rates. In recent years, some of these systems have sought to address such problems by implementing rehabilitation and early release programs. However, the extent to which rehabilitation has been embraced and the nature of said efforts is not known. Using content analysis methods, this exploratory study examines the existence of language supporting rehabilitative practices and goals on official prison system websites across the region. While our findings suggest that prison systems have largely embraced rehabilitative goals, there is limited evidence to indicate that evidence-based practices are emphasized when it comes to assessment and correctional programs. As countries embrace rehabilitative efforts, it is important that they use empirically supported practices, as a perceived failure of the rehabilitative approach could shift the pendulum away from treatment and toward punishment. Implications for future research are discussed.

Variation in Criminal Justice Policy-Making

Variation in Sex Offender Registration and Community Notification (SORCN) policies may suggest differences in public fears of sexual crimes as well as differences in state-level policy-making. This study explored the standardization of SORCN policies across a sample of five midwestern states. A thematic content analysis showed that states varied in how registrants were defined, what information was selected for public notification, and how sex offender laws are maintained. A typology of revisions emerged, which may inform our understanding about policy-making. Ultimately, existing research provides limited explanations for these results, serving as an impetus for future research on context and process of criminal justice policy change.

Examining Factors That Predict Public Concern About the Collateral Consequences of Sex Crime Policy

Sex crime policies have been associated with unintended effects. One involves harassment of registered sex offenders. Despite this finding, and the prominent role of the public in reentry efforts, few studies have examined public opinion about this collateral consequence. By extension, virtually no scholarship has investigated predictors of concern. From a utilitarian perspective, it follows that among those who rely on the registry or who feel sex offenders are driven to reoffend, concern about the registry’s unintended effects will be reduced. In testing this hypothesis the study draws on responses from a national public opinion poll conducted in 2005—a critical time when state registries and online registry websites became increasingly available. Findings support an instrumental or utilitarian argument. Use of the registry and pessimism about offender rehabilitation significantly decreased public concern about registries’ negative outcomes. Implications for research and offender reentry debates are discussed.