Organizational Factors and Probation Officer Use of Evidence-Based Practices: A Multilevel Examination

Community Corrections Officers' Perspectives of the Impact of Hurricane Maria on the Participant's Mental Health and Substance Use: A Qualitative Content Analysis

OBJECTIVE

This study explored community supervision officers' perceptions of the individual, community, and organizational challenges confronted by program participants after Hurricane María and their recommendations for future emergency management.

METHODS

A qualitative content analysis was conducted for nine focus group with community supervision officers in Puerto Rico. Participants were asked about their perceptions of how the mental health and drug abuse of persons on parole or probation were affected and the measures taken to address these concerns in disaster response.

RESULTS

Narratives expose vulnerabilities experienced by those supervised and the aggregated challenges that impact retention in health and rehabilitative services, all of which can detract from successful sentence completion. The disaster response categories call for a more adaptable approach to overseeing procedures in light of the difficulties involved and recognizing the support of the supervised population who have contributed to community initiatives.

CONCLUSION

Findings will contribute to informing planning, preparedness, and responses that mitigate the adverse consequences this vulnerable population may experience when exposed to future disaster hazards. Addressing emergency preparedness in this setting provides an opportunity to enact reforms in community supervision and improve access to services needed to enable the successful reintegration of individuals into their communities.

Evaluations of Probation Specialists on Evidence-Based Probation Practices: A Qualitative Study from Turkey

PURPOSE

This research explores the views of probation specialists working with young offenders about their professional process, professional problems, and the evidence-based practice approach.

METHOD

The qualitative method was used in the research and the phenomenology pattern forms the basis of the research. The data deciphered and conceptualized with descriptive analysis by the organizing and senior researcher.

RESULTS

According to data from in-depth interviews, due to the dual structure of the probation system, which includes both execution and rehabilitation, professional staff experience role conflict. Professional problems such as excessive workload, inadequate physical conditions, not separating the job descriptions of probation specialists according to their fields of expertise, job dissatisfaction, and burnout are common. In addition, there are no scientific tools to measure the effectiveness of the intervention programs and monitoring process in the probation system.

DISCUSSION

There is a need for developing the effectiveness of intervention programs in the probation system and an evidence-based intervention system. At the end of the article, some suggestions on effective social work practices in the probation system are presented from the perspective of evidence-based practice.

What Makes or Breaks Evidence-Based Supervision? Staff and Organizational Predictors of Evidence-Based Practice in Probation

Research on staff and organizational factors that affect receptivity, adoption, feasibility, and utilization of innovations in justice settings is limited. This study uses survey data from 349 employees in one probation agency to assess how staff and perceived organizational factors influence attitudes related to evidence-based practices (EBPs) and their self-reported use. Staff characteristics, including education and knowledge about EBPs, and perceptions of the organization, including cynicism about the organization's ability to change, predicted EBP outcomes. Staff age, tenure at the agency, and caseload size affected perceptions of organizational culture, but did not predict attitudes or use of EBPs. There is weak evidence for a relationship between self-reported use of EBPs with attitudinal support for EBPs, prior EBP training, and knowledge of EBPs. This study contributes to an emerging body of literature about the impact of various individual and organizational factors on support for EBPs with important lessons for implementation.

Individual Characteristics and Organizational Attributes: An Assessment of Probation Officer Burnout and Turnover Intent

In recent years, Western and non-Western countries have experience increased reliance on probation services. However, prior research indicates that high job demands and ambiguous role responsibilities invoke feelings of stress and suggest the importance of understanding the relationship between stress and burnout and turnover. While past efforts largely focused on correctional officers (COs), less is known about how probation officers (POs) experience burnout and how organizational attributes may influence this relationship. Using survey data of federal POs (N = 80) across eight offices in a southern state, the current study examines the influence of individual characteristics and organizational attributes in predicting burnout and turnover intent. To answer our research questions, we perform a series of linear regression models. Findings suggest the importance of affective commitment for reducing POs' feelings of burnout and turnover intent. Implications of these findings and directions of future research are discussed.

Misunderstanding and Sensemaking Among Juvenile Probation Officers Working with Evidence-Based Practices

Evidence-based practices and programs (EBPs) have been adopted in juvenile probation agencies nationwide to maximize the number of successful probation cases. However, various pragmatic studies have found that JPOs are not yielding the expected benefits when compared to efficacy studies (Lipsey et al., 2010; Taxman & Belenko, 2011). Using focus group and survey data, the current study sought to increase our understanding of the gap between pragmatic and efficacy studies in juvenile probation settings by examining JPOs' perceptions and utilization of EBPs. The findings suggest that JPOs are misunderstanding how to use EBPs in daily practice, leaving them with negative perceptions of EBPs. Implications for improving JPO understanding and use of EBPs are discussed.

Modeling Repeat DUI Offender Probation Outcomes Using the Wisconsin Risk Need Assessment

This multiyear study of felony driving while intoxicated (DWI) probationers explores the efficacy of the Wisconsin Risk Need Assessment tool along with sociodemographic factors as measures of probation outcomes. To date, few studies have explored the relationship between risk assessment data and technical violations as well as subsequent arrests of individuals on probation. The sample for this study consists of 596 chronic DWI offenders on community supervision in one county who either had been rearrested for a new offense, violated a technical condition of their probation, or committed no violations within the first 5 years of community supervision. The findings are that older defendants and those who had more dependents were more likely to have committed a technical violation compared with the other two groups. Those rearrested for a new offense were slightly younger compared with the other two groups, less likely to be employed and younger at the age of first adjudication of guilt. This study highlights the limited overall utility of the Wisconsin tool in determining probation outcomes and that static factors may be as important as dynamic factors when developing a supervision strategy for chronic DWI offenders.

Core Correctional Practices in Community Supervision: An Evaluation of a Policy Mandate to Increase Probation Officer Use of Skills

Community supervision officer training programs aim to translate core correctional practices into routine practice. These training programs emphasize skill-building designed to shift supervision strategies from law enforcement/compliance-oriented to a focus on promoting and supporting behavior change. Despite evidence of their effectiveness, research finds trained officers use newly learned skills infrequently. The current study examined the impact of a policy, implemented post-training, designed to encourage trained officers to use skills emphasized by the Staff Training Aimed at Reducing Rearrest (STARR) training program more frequently. The current study examined the effectiveness of this policy on the frequency and type of skills used by officers in their interactions with individuals on their caseload. Analyses suggested the policy mandate was effective in increasing skill use, however officers still used trained skills in less than half of their interactions. Implications and considerations for increasing the use of skills are discussed.

Facilitators of Practitioner Adherence to a Risk/Need Assessment Tool: Hypothesis Testing on a Survey of Juvenile Probation Officers

We used a statewide survey to test hypotheses about the predictors of juvenile probation officers' adherence to the Youth Level of Service/Case Management Inventory (YLS/CMI) risk/need assessment (RNA) tool, focusing on (1) the consistency and quality with which officers completed the tool, and (2) the extent to which they used it in decisions. While some hypotheses had been tested in prior quantitative studies, others were based on insights from case studies. Results showed that leadership and climate variables were consistently important in predicting adherence, though these tended to operate indirectly through their effects on other facilitators. Probation officer attitudes, either toward the YLS/CMI or to evidence-based practices, were also important across adherence measures. Although inconsistent in their effects across dependent variables, quality assurance of officer decision-making, external office relationships, and county YLS/CMI policies also predicted adherence.

The Limitations and Strengths of the Evidence-Based Practice Attitude Scale as a Measure of Correctional Employees' Attitudes: A Psychometric Evaluation

Evidence-based practices (EBPs) hold tremendous potential for improving the outcomes of corrections interventions. The implementation of EBPs requires support from staff at all levels of an organization; however, the study of correctional staff attitudes toward organizational change and EBPs is in its infancy. The current study examines the psychometric properties of the Evidence-Based Practice Attitude Scale (EBPAS), an instrument originally designed for mental health professionals, to measure correctional employees' readiness to implement EBPs. The results indicate mixed conclusions regarding the use of the EBPAS with correctional staff. We found that the total scale and subscales are reliable and exhibit high internal consistency. However, the results of an exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis failed to replicate the factor structure from previous research with mental health providers. The findings indicate potential drawbacks regarding the construct validity of the EBPAS for use with correctional personnel.