Evaluating the Effectiveness of Family Group Conferencing in the Young Offender System in the Edmonton, AB. Area

Source: (2002) M.A. thesis, Peace and Conflict Studies, Royal Roads University, Canada.

In 1995, Family Group Conferencing (FGC) was initially introduced to Canada and eventually utilized in Edmonton in 1996. From 1998 to 2000, numerous young offenders and victims went through the FGC process within the Edmonton area. How effective is FGC program for the participants? The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, this paper will attempt to show that FGC has a positive effect on the young offender as opposed to the young offender going through the traditional criminal justice process. Second, the paper will attempt to show that the victims involved in the FGC process exhibit high levels of satisfaction, and thus support public confidence in the criminal justice system.
The methodology used here will be an analysis of the data and surveys from the completed FGC cases from Community Conferencing Edmonton. Some of the completed cases will be examined through case studies. To determine the effectiveness of the FGC program on the young offender, a statistical analysis will compare the recidivism rate of the young offenders going through FGC and the young offenders going through the normal criminal justice process. Finally, the level of victim satisfaction will be determined from the victim satisfaction surveys.
The key finding and conclusions from the study are that FGC has a place in the criminal justice system. FGC can have a positive effect on the young offender. The victim participating in the FGC process exhibits a high level of satisfaction with the process. Author’s abstract.