Describe the role of social workers in the criminal justice system. What changes would you like to see implemented?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

The primary focus of social work in the criminal justice system has been on the correctional component. Social workers have frequently been employed as probation and parole officers, as social workers in a prison, and as social workers at a correctional halfway house. There are only a few police departments that employ social workers to provide social services to individuals and families with whom police come in contact. To a lesser extent, social workers have been employed in programs that are primarily preventive (as compared to correctional) in nature. For example, in the juvenile gang arena, a wide variety of programs have attempted to reduce delinquent gang activities. These have included detached worker programs, in which workers join gangs and seek to transform antisocial into prosocial attitudes and behaviors; drug treatment programs for gang members who have a chemical addiction; programs to support and strengthen families, particularly single-parent families in urban areas; programs to prevent dropping out of school and to provide academic support (such as mentoring programs); and family preservation programs. Many probation and parole officers are trained in social work. One of the important responsibilities of a probation and parole officer is to prepare a presentence report. This is a social history of the offender that is prepared to help guide the judge in sentencing. In the field of corrections, there are two important factors influencing treatment: custody-treatment conflict and offenders' "con games." Social workers need to understand how these factors operate.