Creating A Reform Environment: A Case Study In Community Corrections And Coalition Building

Abstract

This article focuses on the environment of a criminal justice reform. Specifically, it examines the creation of an organizational climate. Such a climate precedes the actual implementation of a policy, and results from the coalitions formed during the phase of policy creation. Casper and Brereton (1984) state that original coalition structures must be examined to understand the process of reform implementation. This article therefore presents a descriptive case study of the conceptualization, context, and coalition building that preceded the implementation of a community corrections act. The article describes the odyssey of community corrections in Missouri, from its initial introduction into the state by a group of reformers, through its passage by the state legislature, to the beginning of its implementation. To aid in understanding these processes, a perspective from organizational theory is adopted.