Correctional Boot Camps, Attitudes, and Recidivism

Abstract

With the growing disaffection toward customary crime control policies, many citizens and public policy makers have concluded that conventional sanctions have failed to control crime. Instead of continuing to lock up offenders in traditional prison settings, a variety of alternative sanctions have been created. One of the fastest growing of the new approaches has been the correctional boot camp. In 1984, only Georgia and Oklahoma had boot camps, but by 1994 36 states operated such programs. The popularity of boot camps undoubtedly is based on the public's perceived demand for a correctional alternative that offers retribution, deterrence, and rehabilitation. Boot camp programs vary tremendously from state to state, but the strict military regimen is present in all programs. Past research has shown positive attitudinal change in boot camp trainees, and ideally this change should result in reduced recidivism. However, a number of researchers have shown that there are few differences in recidivism rates among boot camp graduates, probationers, and traditionally incarcerated offenders. This research focuses on Oklahoma's first-time offenders sentenced between 1989 and 1991, and an additional group of boot camp inmates surveyed in 1994. The analysis reveals that boot camp graduates recidivated more frequently than either traditionally incarcerated inmates or probationers. The implication is that boot camp programs should be implemented cautiously, and continuously evaluated to determine what elements influence program success.