Analysis of Juvenile Boot Camp Programs: Research Methods Report

This report examines juvenile boot camp programs, also known as intensive incarceration programs, within the context of criminal justice research methods. The report begins by outlining the goals of these programs, primarily to reduce recidivism by modifying the antisocial behaviors of juvenile offenders and providing cost-effective alternatives to traditional correctional facilities. It then details the different types of boot camp programs, including military drilling, rehabilitative, and vocational/educational models. The report also addresses potential pitfalls, such as the lack of standardized models leading to variations in program effectiveness and the risk of staff abuse. The analysis incorporates insights from relevant articles, emphasizing the importance of developmental approaches over confrontational ones, particularly for adolescent offenders. The report concludes with recommendations for ethical practice, effective services, and proper funding to ensure the programs fulfill the needs of juveniles, fostering a crime-free life.

Running head: CRIMINAL JUSTICE RESEARCH METHODS
Criminal Justice Research Methods
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1CRIMINAL JUSTICE RESEARCH METHODS
Juvenile Justice Boot camp programs
Juvenile Boot camps that are also known as intensive incarceration programs are
residential programs that are held for short-term resembling military basic training that is
imparted to the adjudicated juvenile offenders (Williams, 2016). The primary goal of the juvenile
boot camps is to reduce recidivism by modifying the anti-social attitudes and behavior of the
juvenile offenders, which usually lead them to commit crimes again.
The boot camps also aim at providing cost-effective sentencing alternatives to
incarceration by diverging the youths from traditional correctional facilities and permitting them
to serve a shorter period in the program. The boot camps aims at improving the academic and
literacy achievement and they are assisted in reducing their drinking and drug habits. There are
three types of boot camp programs that are designed for offenders. Military drilling style,
rehabilitative model and the vocational/educational model are three types of boot camp programs
(Mitchell, 2017).
Potential pitfalls in boot camp programs
A lack of a standard boot camp model results in differences in programs in terms of size,
style, cost, and availability of proper treatment services provided by the programs. Although
Boot camps are stated to be strict where staffs are expected to use stringent methods with the
inmates which often leads to abuse of inmates by the staffs. This is because most of the boot
camps tend to adopt the military style as its central theme. The residential phase that includes
intensive training is incomplete and the military style boot camp programs are inconsistent with
policies, procedures and philosophies. The researchers believe that throughout the camp

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training, there is high risk of inmate aggression affecting the post-camp lives of juveniles by
promoting such aggressive behavior.
Articles: Boot Camps for Juvenile Offenders
In this article, the author stated that the best approach to modify the behavior of the
juvenile offenders using the military style is to implement it as a developmental model instead of
a confrontational model especially with the adolescent offenders. This is because they respond to
encouragement more than to punishment, as they are sensitive to anything that they consider as
unfair. Although in order to avoid punishment, they tend to change their behavior but such
change is not a response to punishment (Ncjrs.gov, 2018).
Correctional Boot Camps- Lesson learned from a Decade of Research
In this article, it has been observed that the disciplined structure and therapeutic programs
assists in reducing idleness and create a safer environment improving the attitude and behavior of
the inmates. This approach coupled with therapeutic orientation is better than other approaches
and may be applied to correctional programs that target young offenders (Ncjrs.gov, 2018).
Recommendations
The boot camps programs must ensure that it implements ethical practice like the staffs
are allowed to be stringent with the inmates but not to the extent that it amounts to an abuse of
the inmates. It must include effective services that will assist the youth to bring out their own
ideas to fulfill their need through a non-delinquent attitude. Although the boot camps programs
cannot reduce recidivism largely, but funding for an appropriate boot camp that ensures proper

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design and fulfils the needs of the juvenile to feel competent for something and feel a connection
to their families, encouraging them to live a crime free life.

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References
Mitchell, O. (2017). Boot Camps. The Encyclopedia of Juvenile Delinquency and Justice.
Ncjrs.gov. (2018). Search Results - National Criminal Justice Reference Service. [online]
Available at: https://www.ncjrs.gov/App/Search/SearchResults.aspx?
txtKeywordSearch=juvenile+justice+boot+camp+programs&fromSearch=1 [Accessed 22
Mar. 2018].
Williams, G. T. (2016). The Effectiveness of Juvenile Boot Camps and Their Impact on Minority
Youth.