The significance of Ohio's victim awareness program on restorative justice /

Abstract

The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction began offering offenders the Victim Awareness Program as an available treatment program in 1999. Programs such as these are nationally referred to as impact classes or panels for offenders. The purpose of the study was to determine if subj ects exposed to the program exhibit a more accurate definition of restorative justice elements. An evaluation of the program was conducted through an empirical study to determine if there is a significant increase in Acquired Knowledge of restorative justice concepts after participants have completed the Community Justice Chapter of the program. The evaluation of the Victim Awareness Program has not demonstrated having a significant increase of restorative justice concepts on participant's Acquired knowledge. Since the evaluation did not indicate an increase in participant knowledge, it further supports past theorist findings of the inconsistency on restorative justice concepts as well as correctional programs being developed without the foundation of principles already proven to work and the inability to properly assess correctional program effectiveness.