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NET WIDENING
Sociologyindex, Sociology Books 2012, Net widening, Deinstitutionalization
Within critical criminology this term is used to describe
the effects of providing alternatives to incarceration or diversion programs to direct
offenders away from court.
While all of these programs developed since the late
1960's were intended to reduce the numbers of offenders in prison or reduce the numbers
going to court, it has been found that what has happened instead is that the total numbers
of offenders under the control of the state have increased while the population targeted
for reduction has not been reduced.
In short, the net of social control has been thrown more
widely (or some might say the mesh has been made smaller).
‘NET-WIDENING’ - Vagaries in the Use of a Concept
MAEVE McMAHON, Centre of Criminology, University of Toronto
Problematic aspects of the concept of ‘net-widening’ as used in critical
analyses of community corrections are documented. Political and analytical rationales for
challenging contentions of ‘net-widening’ are advanced. The critical literature
yields a political void. The conclusion of positivists that ‘nothing works’ in rehabilitating the
recalcitrant offender has merely been transmuted by critical criminologists: ‘nothing works’ in reforming the
recalcitrant criminal justice system. Methodological problems in analyses of
‘net-widening’ are illustrated through a re-examination of several key studies.
Documentation of trends in imprisonment has often been partial. Fundamental differences in
imprisonment and probation data have been obscured. Suggestions are made for moving beyond
the reproduction of sociological pessimism and towards the accomplishment of critical
praxis. - bjc.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/30/2/121
Net-Widening of the Juvenile Justice System in Japan
Minoru Yokoyama
The phenomenon of net-widening was identified by American scholars carrying out research
for the evaluation of diversion programs in the American juvenile justice system. The
phenomenon, however, can occur independent of diversion programs. This paper emphasizes
that, when assessing the net-widening or the net-narrowing of the juvenile justice system,
researchers should compare the boundaries of the juvenile justice system with those of
other components of the justice system. By identifying the boundaries, one can attempt to
explain how the net-widening of the juvenile justice system has occurred in Japan. -
cjr.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/14/1/43
Juvenile Arbitration: Net Widening and Other Unintended
Consequences
Mark Ezell
This study seeks to determine whether a juvenile arbitration program can alter the reach
of the court in a unique fashion. Using an interrupted time-series design with a
comparison group, it shows that the preprogram trend of increasing rates of judicial
handling shifted to a decreasing pattern but that the rates of judicial supervision
continued to climb. In addition, there were changes in the court's decision making
relating to probation and commitment to residential programs associated with the
implementation of the arbitration program. The author concludes that this new style of
diversion, one that is sanction oriented, results in larger numbers of youth being in the
system longer, subject to system requirements and control. -
jrc.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/26/4/358
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