Abstract:
Prevention and intervention programmes that aim to reduce reoffending are now being evaluated in order to determine their effect on a young person’s offending behaviour. However, there is virtually no reoffending outcome research in New Zealand. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the youth development programme Genesis Youth Trust. They had requested that a formal independent evaluation of their programme be carried out to inform and develop their services. This study was retrospective in nature, and involved a quasi-experimental between-group research design. In total, 190 youth offenders were involved in this study – 95 young people who had attended Genesis within a two year period, and 95 young people who had not attended Genesis, matched for offence history and demographic variables. An analysis of Police apprehension records showed no significant impact on total reoffending for those youth who completed the programme when compared to the comparison group. However, there was a slight delay to reoffending for the Genesis group with reoffending being at a lower rate in the first year post-programme. A programme effect was evident when comparing programme completers to non-completers, wherein lower rates, frequency, and time to first reoffence were seen for those who completed Genesis.
