Facility Rehabilitation

This paper will examine the programs and services utilized within correctional facilities in the context of rehabilitation. While prisons were not intended to serve as mental health institutions, psychologists within the criminal justice system have acquired a great deal of information about the foundations of crime and criminal behavior. According to Craig Haney, a psychologist from the University of California, it is imperative that psychologists bring information into the debate on the types of crime control policies that our society should follow (as cited in Benson, 2003). It is from a psychological treatment orientation that these programs will be examined. It is important to note that research into public opinion on this matter has been mixed. Currently there are no specific surveys of public opinion regarding the specifics of confinement and treatment (Groscup, 2005).
  Today, what some may view as excessive privileges are in fact rights that are afforded to inmates according to the U.S. Constitution. Prior to the 1960s inmates gave up all rights that were not explicitly given by the policy of the correctional facility of which they were incarcerated. This was known as the hands-off doctrine (Siegel & Senna, 2004). By the early 1970s, social activist groups paved the way for legal arguments that addressed the civil rights of inmates. Over the past twenty years, inmates have been given a handful of rights that are protected under the constitution. The term ‘right’ refers to something that is legally given as a basic standard. In opposition to this is a ‘privilege’, which is usually something that is granted or given above and beyond a basic standard or status. The two terms cannot be used interchangeably. Inmates in the United States retain few constitutional rights while incarcerated and are granted few privileges. Programs and services are often a combination of rights and privileges. Many of these programs have been incorporated with the notion of...