The Most Pressing Problem for the Prison System Is Recidivism - Coursework Example

THE MOST PRESSING PROBLEM FOR THE PRISON SYSTEM IS RECIDIVISM here] of [Due paper Introduction Recidivism is the most pressing problem for the prison system. Recidivism refers to the relapse of a prisoner’s mental health due to lack of or provision of improper rehabilitation services. The rate of recidivism is the degree to which a criminal is imprisoned again either as the result of the same crime or for some other criminal offense. Criminals not receiving a proper psychological treatment during imprisonment show a higher degree of recidivism as compared to those who are part of rehabilitation programs. In the United Kingdom, the rate of recidivism is fairly higher as compared to many other parts of the world. Only in one year from April 2010 to March 2011, nearly 640,000 offenders were warned, imprisoned, or released from the custody (Ministry of Justice 2013). Recidivism is the area of concern for the prison system because it adds to the expenses of the government in terms of incarceration and trial expenses, as well as poses threat to the peace of the society. This paper will be about why recidivism is the most pressing problem for the prison system of the United Kingdom. 2. Why Recidivism Rate is high in the UK’s Prison System? The research based on newspapers and other sources reveal that the rehabilitation services being provided to prisoners in the United Kingdom are not up to the standards. The rate of reconviction in fourteen prisons of England and Wales is more than 70% which is very high (Travis 2010). A very small number of prisons offer all essential rehabilitation programs to the prisoners. Most of the prisons implement the basic programs, such as, treatment for mental illness, treatment for substance abuse, and employment programs but there is no proper check and balance system to ensure whether these prisons are providing these facilities to the prisoners in reality or provision of these facilities are limited to the papers. According to news report of BBC, as large as 90 percent of the prisoners of the jails of England and Wales have offended before and some of them have even committed more than 15 crimes (BBC 2013). This figure was collected in 2011 from 12 different jails of the United Kingdom. If we talk about the United States of America, studies show that with only 5 percent of the worlds population, the incarceration rate in the United States of America is 25 percent of the whole world, which is fairly large (Clifford 2011). However, the rate of recidivism is somewhat less as compared to what it is in the United Kingdom. Although in the United Kingdom the correctional authorities carry out employment, educational and psychological treatment programs to make prisoners leave the crimes and come back to normal life, but they do not provide discrimination-free employment and educational opportunities to them because of which a sense of revenge occurs in their minds that makes them commit the crimes repeatedly. 3. The Effects of Recidivism Recidivism is the biggest area of concern because it causes a number of problems not only for the prison system but also for the government and the society. For prison system, it is harmful because there is already shortage of prisons in the United Kingdom because of increase in the number of prisoners in the past couple of decades. A high rate of recidivism puts a negative impact on the prison system of any country (Scott 2012). The prisons at present are unable to hold large number of prisoners because of les capacity. In such conditions, recidivism adds to the problem of shortage of prisons because when a large percentage of prisoners come back to prisons after committing crimes, the space for prisoners becomes less which affects the quality of services being provided to the prisoners. Habitual prisoners also put a negative impact on the people under psychological treatment. For the government of the United Kingdom, recidivism is destructive because it adds to the expenses of the government in terms of incarceration, rehabilitation, and trial expenses. The higher the rate of recidivism, the higher will be the level of government expenses on the overall criminal justice system. Similarly, recidivism also affects the society as large in terms of increased threat to the overall peace of the society. Therefore, the government of the United Kingdom needs to take some effect measures in order to reduce the rate of recidivism, as well as to cut off all of the associated negative consequences. 4. What Should Be Done? Although the correctional facilities in the United Kingdom provide rehabilitation services to prisoners, but they need to implement a proper mechanism to ensure the provision of those services to all prisoners regardless of any gender, ethnic, or religious differences between them. Provision of competent care can be used to prevent recidivism among prisoners (Lamberti, 2007). Use of private prisons can also be very effective for the cause as they carry out psychological, educational, and other types of rehabilitation programs more effectively than public prisons. According to Ball (2007, p. 1), mentally ill prisoners are given insufficient medical and psychological care and are released without proper rehabilitation because of which they become dangerous for the society. Correctional officers should not treat such prisoners unfairly because it destroys their aim to come back to normal life. Discriminatory activities make them think negatively because of which their chances of engaging in criminal activities increase. Therefore, correctional officers should treat all prisoners equally in order to speed up their mental health recovery process. According to Ball (2007, p. 1), mentally ill prisoners face a high level of administrative segregation which results in their mental deterioration and reconviction upon release from jails. It is the responsibility of correctional facilities to introduce and implement such programs that should focus the psychological, emotional, physical, and educational needs of prison inmates. In-prison substance abuse programs, positive psychological treatment, and community-based treatment have proven very effective in reducing recidivism in Californian prisons (Hinkle 2009). The main objective of positive psychology is to assist prisoners in developing their mindset to live productive lives (Hendelman 2010). Implementation of mental illness treatment programs can also be an effective way to reduce the rate of recidivism among prisoners. Prisoners need continuity of care reentry programs to change their mindset (Baillargeon et al. 2009, p. 103). Correctional officers need to make the prisoners feel valued and honored by them and the society. According to Prendergast (2009, p. 4), prison treatment programs that are based on therapeutic community programs are very effective in reducing recidivism. Therefore, use of therapeutic acre can also be a viable option to develop criminals into productive citizens. Chances of recidivism also increase when a person does not get a proper job upon release from the prison. Prisoners face many legal employment barriers because of their past criminal record (Visher et al. 2005, p. 295). The reason is that they do not have proper education or experience certificates they they can use to get legal employment. Therefore, correctional facilities should issue job experience certificates to prisoners upon their release in order to help them find work and live their lives positively. A community-centered approach to rehabilitation proves to be extremely beneficial for prisoners, as well as for the society (Golembeski 2005, p. 1701). 5. Conclusion Summing it up, mental health recidivism refers to the relapse of a prisoner’s mental health due to he/she commits crime again. Recidivism is the biggest area of concern for the prison system of the United Kingdom because it causes a number of administrative problems for the prison system, as well as for the government and the society. Use of private prisons mental illness treatment, psychotherapy, and educational and employment programs are some of the most appropriate programs that prison authorities can use to deal with the prison system’s most pressing problem of recidivism. References Baillargeon, J, Binswanger, I, Penn, J, Williams, B & Murray, O 2009, Psychiatric disorders and repeat incarcerations: the revolving prison door, The American Journal of Psychiatry, vol. 166, no. 1, pp. 103-109. Ball, W 2007, Mentally ill prisoners in the California department of corrections and rehabilitation: strategies for improving treatment and reducing recidivism, Journal of Contemporary Law and Health Policy, vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 1-42. BBC 2013, Reoffending rates reach record level, viewed 10 March 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-18188610 Clifford, M 2011, Practical Perspective: Recidivism Defined, viewed 10 March 2013, http://www.corrections.com/news/article/29145-practical-perspective-recidivism-defined- Golembeski, C 2005, Criminal (in) justice in the city and its associated health consequences, American Journal of Public Health, vol. 10, pp. 1701-1706. Hendelman, S 2010, Meditation As a Tool for Rehabilitation of Prison Inmates, viewed 10 March 2013, http://ezinearticles.com/?Meditation-As-a-Tool-for-Rehabilitation-of-Prison-Inmates&id=5495379 Hinkle, G 2009, Substance Abuse Programs Reduce Recidivism, viewed 10 March 2013, http://www.corrections.com/news/article/22508-substance-abuse-programs-reduce-recidivism Lamberti, J 2007, Understanding and preventing criminal recidivism among adults with psychotic disorders, Psychiatric Services, vol. 58, no. 6. Ministry of Justice 2013, Proven Re-offending, viewed 10 March 2013, http://www.justice.gov.uk/statistics/reoffending/proven-re-offending Prendergast, M 2009, Interventions to Promote Successful Re-Entry Among Drug-Abusing Parolees, Addict Sci Clin Pract., vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 4-13. Scott, J 2012, Criminal Recidivism, Recidivism, Statistics, Prison Recidivism and an Overtaxed Population, viewed 10 March 2013, http://www.content4reprint.com/finance/criminal-recidivism-recidivism-statistics-prison-recidivism-and-an-overtaxed-population.htm Travis, A 2010, Reoffending rate top 70% in some prisons, figures reveal, viewed 10 March 2013, http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/nov/04/jail-less-effective-community-service Visher, C, Winterfield, L & Coggeshall, M 2005, Ex-offender employment programs and recidivism: A meta-analysis, Journal of Experimental Criminology, vol. 1, no. 3, pp. 295-316. Read More