At the intersection of research and practice: Constructing guidelines for a hybrid model of community supervision

Abstract

Probation and parole officers must carefully balance law enforcement and rehabilitation goals to deliver effective treatments and behavioral controls. The tension between these two goals can create uncertainty regarding appropriate supervision practices. The present study summarizes results from an effort to construct community supervision practice guidelines by integrating scientific research and clinical expertise from supervision stakeholders (officers and individuals involved in the criminal legal system). Using consensus-building methods and practice frameworks, we assembled perspectives from these stakeholders via a survey. Results indicate that, while stakeholders endorse rehabilitative supervision strategies, they face several implementation challenges. Specifically, officers report that their organizations prioritize hierarchy and consistency over innovation and adaptation, which may make it difficult to move away from the longstanding use of punitive controls. Additional challenges are indicated by stakeholders' lack of discrimination between different client subpopulations and general disagreement among officers as to appropriate treatments and controls for clients classified as low risk. Further research and translation efforts are needed to help the field understand the clinical differences of subpopulations, to clarify appropriate treatments and controls for those classified as low risk, and to incorporate the perspectives of people involved in the criminal legal system into supervision practices.