Past = Corrections Comprehensive Exams

DEPT. OF = CRIMINAL=20 JUSTICE & POLITICAL SCIENCE

NORTH DAKOTA = STATE=20 UNIVERSITY =20 FARGO, = ND

Past=20 Corrections Comprehensive Exams

August = 2005

Group A =96 = Answer one of the two questions in = this=20 Group.

As guest editor of an upcoming special issue = of=20 =93Criminology & Public Policy,=94 you have been asked to write an = introduction to the volume in which the entire issue is a series of = articles=20 about Correctional Policy-Program Issues-Challenges as these connect = to public=20 policy and public safety. The title of your article is: =93The State = of the=20 Discipline: Early 21^st Century Accomplishments and Future=20 Directions.=94 Provide a full draft of your article in which you = discuss three=20 (3) applied lessons the research community can =96 or =96 should = provide to policy=20 makers in terms of future directions for correctional practice. Defend = your=20 selections.

There seem to be two =93camps=94 into which=20 practitioners/politicians fall regarding crime. One camp suggests we = should=20 =93get tough=94 with crime and criminals. The philosophy here is to react to crime in such a way = as to=20 reduce the crime rate, for instance by increasing the certainty and = severity=20 of punishment through the increased use of incarceration. Another camp = is=20 a prevention rather than a reaction camp, = which=20 suggests that money/resources/effort is best spent preventing crime = before it=20 occurs. Given a fixed amount of time and resources, which approach is = most=20 likely to yield meaningful reductions in the=20 U.S. crime rate?

Group B =96 = Answer three of the six questions in = this=20 group.

Assume you are preparing a Presidential = Address to the=20 upcoming annual meetings of the American Society of Criminology. The = title of=20 your presentation is: =93What to do and not do about crime: The = Martinson report=20 in 2005.=94 Provide a full draft of your presentation in which you = discuss the=20 current state of our knowledge about the effectiveness (or lack = thereof) of=20 correctional rehabilitation programs. Provide recommendations for what = should=20 and should not be done in rehabilitation and defend your=20 position.

You have been asked to give the keynote = address at the=20 upcoming meetings of the American Bar Association. The title of your=20 presentation is: =93Sentencing Dilemmas and Correctional = Policy-Program Impacts:=20 The Need for Reforms.=94 Provide a full draft of your presentation in = which you=20 present guidelines for sentencing policy reforms as these=20 impact correctional efficacy. Defend your selected=20 guidelines.

Beginning in the 1970=92s, juvenile courts = and=20 corrections moved toward different philosophies of handling wayward = juveniles.=20 Describe some of these reforms in the field of juvenile courts and = corrections=20 during this time period. Then, narrate the rationale and theory behind = this=20 movement. Discuss the criticisms levied against this movement. = Describe=20 empirical evidence that suggests that these reforms have or have not = been=20 effective towards reducing recidivism.

From a corrections perspective, describe = both the=20 demand-side and supply-side strategy for combating drug use and abuse. = Which=20 drug policy strategy has been most popular for the past 20 years and = why?=20 Correctional =93supply-siders=94 (e.g., proponents of incarcerating = drug=20 offenders) have contended that their approach is superior to demand = strategies=20 for combating drug use because treatment for drug abuse and addiction = is=20 largely ineffective. Argue either for or against this statement using=20 empirical research. =20

Since Wolfgang=92s landmark study, the = career criminal=20 research has consistently shown that there is a group of high-rate = offenders,=20 the =93career criminals.=94 It has been argued that the prospective = identification=20 of these high-rate offenders would provide policy-makers with a = powerful crime=20 prevention tool. Based on your assessment of the relevant literature, = discuss=20 whether or not we should be optimistic about our ability to provide = policy=20 makers with this type of tool.

The official policy position of the American = Society=20 of Criminology with respect to the death penalty (adopted in November = 1989)=20 states in part that, =93=85social science research has demonstrated = the death=20 penalty to be racist in application and social science research has = found no=20 consistent evidence of crime deterrence through execution=85=94 = Provide a thorough=20 discussion of the empirical literature that focuses on the research = either=20 that supports OR refutes these statements regarding either 1) racial = disparity=20 in the application of the death penalty, OR 2) the issue of crime = deterrence=20 through execution. Your discussion should include an overview of the = methods=20 and results of both historical and contemporary research.