Therapeutic Correctional Relationships

Anyone who has worked with involuntary clients appreciates the importance of the professional relationship, but what does it involve? How are relationships established and sustained and what is to be done when things go wrong? Sarah Lewis has written a wise and insightful book, solidly grounded on theory drawn from a range of disciplines and enlivened by the views of practitioners and users of probation services taken from her own original research. With many well-judged reflections on emotion, power and legitimacy, this is an invaluable contribution to effective and ethical practice. -Rob Canton, Professor in Community and Criminal Justice, De Montfort University This book provides important and illuminating insights into the crucial process of facilitating positive change with individuals through therapeutic correctional relationships. The innovative nature of the research study, together with the breadth and depth of the analysis of the findings, makes this a significant and timely contribution to this area. -Jill Annison, Associate Professor in Criminal Justice Studies, Plymouth University Therapeutic Correctional Relationships is a much needed corrective for rehabilitation research. Rather than mysterious talk about offender treatment, conjuring doctors in white lab coats calibrating precise dosage of moral medicine, Sarah Lewis explores rehabilitation work for what it really is: human relationships. In doing so, we get a much more realistic and even more optimistic vision of what works and how it works in the complicated business of personal transformation. It is just what the doctor ordered! -Shadd Maruna, Dean, Rutgers School of Criminal Justice Sarah Lewis has captured the essence of the 'relational revolution' in corrections with a perfectly pitched blend of scholarly discourse and insightful analysis of both offender and practitioner perspectives. Her qualitative study of the features of the 'good relationship' in a correctional context goes much further than others before her and she develops an engaging framework for understanding not just the rhythm and flow of that relationship but the processes that affect it. Importantly, she clarifies that if therapeutic change is to emerge, it will not just fall out of the relationship. It will occur because of the right mixture of skills, qualities and values of practitioners in keeping the relationship on track and repairing ruptures. If you are a correctional professional committed to helping offenders transform their lives, a probation or prison service manager, a volunteer, or even just an interested observer, you need to read this book. -Frank J. Porporino, Ph.D., T3 Associates Inc. and International Association for Correctional and Forensic Psychology, Ottawa, Canada