Aspirations of Restorative Justice Proponents and Experiences of Participants in Family Group Conferences

Co-option, coercion and compromise: challenges of restorative justice in Victoria, Australia

“…Consequently, Choi et al (2013, p. 128) suggested that these problems were attributed to 'misunderstandings regarding the application of restorative justice values and principles' in practice. Zernova (2007a) also examined how the institutionalization of family group conferencing (FGC) programs in England in turn affected RJ practice. Her research focused on the goals of RJ advocates, including victim redress and participation as well as alternatives to dominant offender-focused treatment programs.…”

“…Victims 'appeared to be "empowered" only to a degree that did not endanger the achievement of the objectives of the criminal justice system' (Zernova, 2007a, p. 506). Consequently, interviews with victims also showed that victims felt 8 that the process was offender-centered, and some reported no benefits from attending the process (Zernova, 2007a).…”

Toward a Communication Perspective of Restorative Justice: Implications for Research, Facilitation, and Assessment

“…Of these goals, those most typically evaluated to assess effectiveness are as follows: (a) satisfaction (Bolívar, ; Bonta et al., ; Braithwaite, ; Coates & Gehm, ; Dignan, ; Johnstone, ; Kurki, ; Larsen, ; McCold, ; Rugge & Cormier, ; Shapland, Robinson, & Sorsby, ; Strang et al., ; Umbreit et al., ; Umbreit, Coates, & Vos, ; van Camp & Wemmers, ; Van Ness & Schiff, ; Weatherburn & Macadam, ), (b) agreement and restitution (Bonta et al., ; Braithwaite, ; Dignan, ; Umbreit et al., ; Van Ness & Schiff, ; Zernova, ), and (c) recidivism (de Beus & Rodriguez, ; Johnstone, ; Latimer et al., ; Rodriguez, ; Umbreit et al., ). Satisfaction tends to be the most frequently used marker of effectiveness.…”

Restorativeness, Procedural Justice, and Defiance as Long-Term Predictors of Reoffending of Participants in Family Group Conferences

“…As many remain skeptical of the effectiveness of restorative justice programs for meeting traditional criminal justice goals (e.g., Zernova, 2007), it is necessary to understand more fully how restorative programs like family group conferences (FGCs) can affect juvenile recidivism in the United States. Some studies have reported promising reductions in juvenile recidivism following restorative justice interventions (Petrosino, Guckenburg, & Turpin-Petrosino, 2010), but other scholars have been more critical of these studies due to potentially biasing flaws in research design (Weatherburn, McGrath, & Bartels, 2012).…”