Mustering Support for the Scared Straight Youth Prevention Program

Introduction

A person-in-environment perspective is meant to make way for an adequate framework for use in assessing individuals as well as their strengths and presenting problems, rather than approaching it by placing the significant focus on changing their psyche or behavior, or an approach that focuses entirely on environmental conditions. Understanding human behavior can be used as a tool in predicting the outcomes of a situation or even directing the mediation of a situation to land the desired result. The concept is instrumental in social work and education and is based on the idea that the behavior of an individual can be adequately understood without the input of their physical, economic, spiritual, temporal, familial, political and social environment. Concerning this, to make a social work change or implement a new idea requires engaging the macrosystem, which in turn requires knowledge on how the community and organizations function, as well as the social environment around. Knowing that everyone in the community yearns for a society free of crime or as few crimes as possible will help appeal to their logical side in setting up the Scared Straight program.

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Setting up The Scared Straight Youth Prevention Program requires interaction with the community to find out the feasibility of the idea as well as the expected reception. For a project to succeed, it must have the right support from the required people, hence the effort in mustering support from clients and constituencies using the notions as mentioned above. Mustering support is one way of neutralizing opposition for any project being undertaken. It was planned that individuals who have benefitted from similar programs and who, therefore, had stories to share would be used to engage the emotions of the community and be a good source of useful information for the project.

Community support can be in the form of donations and even volunteered workforce which will support the process. Individuals afflicted by drug problems, poverty and other factors that lead them into crime will also feel motivated to join the team and be one of those who benefits from the program. Implementation of the program will require the recruitment of various trainers and qualified staff, who will make use of behavioral science to help rehabilitate the young men who come to receive help.

Leaders in the community have the means, power and authority to help in the implementation and will, therefore, be sought after for their input and support which could be through ideas, funding, publicly advocating for the project and even providing a permanent venue for implementation of the project. The leaders could also help with the networking with police for young males caught engaging in crime to be allowed to undergo rehabilitation in the center rather than face the justice system. Collaboration with other similar organizations could also lead to help with professional staff and guidelines on how to run the operation. Overall, mustering support from constituencies, leaders and the community will help ensure the success of the Scared Straight project.

Potential members of the action system include former and rehabilitated delinquents, similar organizations, professional caretakers, the police, leaders, and even community volunteers. All will be working together for the sake of current delinquents and the community as a whole.

Engaging the clients and constituents will involve appealing to their desires and using them to obtain support for the project. Having former delinquents share their tales of triumph with the community would engage their favor since they would be keen to have more favorable outcomes in such individuals as well as have a fewer number of delinquents and lowering the rate of crime in neighborhoods all over. Having something to relate with is bound to reach out to the emotions of the community members for them to root for the success of the project. The idea of lower crime rates is bound to appeal to the leaders, who strive to leave better legacies than their predecessors.

Task forces and advisory councils are an important element in many social work projects, and it will be wise to set up one for the Scared straight program. The boards direct the program on the direction it should take. It also shares expertise, provides feedback and also acts as a professional resource to the faculty and all young men involved in the program. The council will be made up of members from the action system. In the board, interaction and communication are expected to be open. All correspondence and decisions will be documented and shared to ensure efficiency (Percy-Smith and Thomas, 174)

Reference

Percy-Smith, B., & Thomas, N. (Eds.). (2009). A handbook of children and young people's participation: Perspectives from theory and practice. Routledge.