The Importance of Systems in Improving Offender Outcomes: New Frontiers in Treatment Integrity

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Abstract
This paper uses a recent process evaluation of Residential Substance Abuse Treatment (RSAT) block grant programs to illustrate the rationale for a systems approach to corrections-based treatment. First, the paper briefly discusses the history of treatment for the criminal justice offender and the origins of the “boundaryless” organization concept. Second, it presents results from a process evaluation of several jail-based drug treatment programs. These findings are then used to highlight the central components of “boundaryless” organizations and the respective policy and operational changes (e.g., assessment and treatment) needed to focus on improved offender outcomes, especially the client's completion of the treatment program. It provides a rationale for focusing on a systems approach as a means to use treatment as a crime prevention tool.