INTRODUCTION

Correctional boot camps are short-term incarceration programs modeled after military basic training (MacKenzie & Parent, 1992; MacKenzie & Hebert, 1996). Since their inception in the adult correctional systems in the United States in 1983 in Georgia and Oklahoma, the programs have rapidly grown, first within adult correctional systems and later in local jails and in juvenile institutions. Boot camps for juveniles were developed after the adult camps; however, they developed rapidly during the 1990s and by 2000 there were seventy juvenile camps in the United States (Koch Crime Institute, 2001). Today, correctional boot camps exist in the United States in federal, state, and local adult jurisdictions, and in state and local juvenile facilities. Correctional boot camps have also been opened in Canada and England.

There are some similarities among most of the correctional boot camps. As in military basic training, inmates often enter the camps in squads or platoons. There may be an elaborate intake ceremony where inmates are immediately required to follow the rules, respond to staff in appropriate ways, stand at attention, and have their heads shaved. While in the program, participants are required to follow a rigorous daily schedule of activities including physical exercise, drill, and ceremony. They arise early each morning and are kept active for most of the day. Staff are addressed by military titles. Punishment for misbehavior is immediate and swift and frequently involves some type of physical activity such as push-ups. A graduation ceremony marks successful completion of the program.