Program Evaluation in Correction

The recent increase in demands for correctional program evaluation, along with a technical literature on the subject, is reviewed. This paper argues that the first step in program evaluation often focuses on specification of the nature of the intervention effort to be assessed, including identification of its theoretical rationale. Evaluation research then proceeds to determine whether the program actually dealt with the offenders for whom it was intended, whether it delivered the appropriate services to them, and whether it had any impact on them. A good deal of research innovativeness is required in the evaluation of non-experimental correctional efforts.