An Evaluation Model for Criminal Justice

Abstract

This paper focuses on the problems encountered in the evaluation of criminal justice programs. Although experimental research is the preferred design, oftentimes it is infeasible for a variety of reasons. No matter what design the researcher is using, a variety of problems can be anticipated. When there is a conflict between the evaluation design and the needs of the criminal justice system, the design will have to be changed. The author proposes that traditional research designs be supplemented by the utilization of general evaluation models which are applicable to all criminal justice programs. Such models would focus on those attributes which are common across sub-systems and programs. Goal effectiveness and efficiency models are discussed, with emphasis on the weaknesses of goal-oriented evaluation models. The author proposes that evaluation focus on the program's societal impact. This would eliminate the consideration of program goals and means; the focus would be on the program's social benefits and social costs. This approach, known as the social accounting model, allows evalutation across time, across counterpart systems, across programs, and across communities. A social accounting model provides description of the system's social costs and social benefits, and it expresses the program value in terms of a net surplus or a net deficit. The criminal justice system could be evaluated on the basis of relative efficiency, and programs which are equally effective in achieving a goal can be compared in terms of their social surplus or deficit. Formulas for determining social costs, social benefits, social surplus, and cumulative social surplus are identified. Examples of social costs and social benefits are delineated. The author also illustrates the feasibility of expressing the costs and benefits of crime and criminal justice in terms of monetary value. The author advocates the establishment of the Criminal Justice Social Accounting Committee in order to facilitate reliable estimates of the costs and benefits of criminal justice operations. This committee could have an impact on the allocation of resources to criminal justice systems and programs.