Despite the growing number of studies on assisted desistance, none has been made yet to identify the conclusive aspects of this process. This scoping review shows that informal interventions in assisted desistance help develop new ways to perceive oneself and one's social bonds (or to create new ones) and contribute to the emergence of new identities. We do not know, however, if they contribute to the adoption of a new way of living. Research avenues are suggested, with a view to outlining the long-term effects of informal intervention programs offered to violators in the socio-penal system.
Current research often relies on measures of recidivism to evaluate the effectiveness of formal criminal justice system interventions. Such studies, however, do not provide information on desistance from crime, that is, on how such interventions can help maintaining abstinence from offending and assist desisters in their efforts to change. This scoping review argues that formal agents (such as probation officers) can play a part in supporting desistance by providing practical help and resources based on desisters’ needs, and can assist in changes in self‐identity through sustained positive feedback and encouragement. We propose a model of assisted desistance to conceptualise the effects of formal agents on desistance processes. The mandatory context of interventions, the fragile balance between legalistic and therapeutic roles, as well as the processes of desistance outside of the criminal justice system are considered. Implications for future research, policy, and practice are discussed.
Deferred custody and supervision order, an intermediate sanction which came into effect in 2003, had never been the subject of a scientific study. In the absence of research data, judges would give the sentence without knowing the outcome. To fill this gap, this study presents the failure rates (technical violations, revocations and new-crime violations) and success rates of all young Quebecers who completed a deferred custody and supervision order between 1 June 2003 and 31 May 2012. As with studies that examined similar sentences elsewhere in the world, success rates are relatively low. Suggestions are made to limit failures associated with this type of juvenile intermediate sanctions.
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