| Although the inmate population has soared since the United States declared a "war on drugs" during the mid 1980's, there is a paucity of rehabilitative programs offered in the prison system. A review of the literature suggests that substance abuse and violence are inter-correlated and result in a high rate of recidivism without intervention. Yet most programs target substance abuse, violence and incarceration as isolated variables and few address the underlying issues that provoke these maladaptive behaviors. Further, many lack a theoretical foundation and the majority fail to include empirically validated intervention methodologies. The current study offers a proposed drug and violence group program for incarcerated males. Included is a detailed manual that provides step-by-step instructions, is easy to implement and is cost effective. The objective of the program is to create cognitive and behavioral change with the long-term goal of reducing substance abuse, violence, and re-incarceration. Goldstein's theory of substance abuse and violence, Cognitive-Behavioral Theory, Social Cognitive Theory and Interpersonal Theory guided the development of the curriculum along with psycho-education, skill building and improved insight into personal behavior in order to target substance abuse, emotional regulation and interpersonal relationships. Finally, a pretest and posttest assessment battery is recommended to assess for changes in attitude regarding substance abuse, anger, and interpersonal relationships and to determine the efficacy of the program. |
