ABSTRACT
Boot camp prisons (BCP), also known as shock incarceration programs, emerged during a "get tough" crime control era that emphasized punishment and retribution in an attempt to deter offenders from committing crime. The wave of boot camps focused solely on basic military drill, work, exercise, and corporal punishment to correct behavior. The rapid development and implementation of BCPs during the late 1980s outpaced scientific evaluations to determine their effectiveness. Thus, like many popular programs in criminal justice, BCPs were implemented without a strong theoretical basis guiding their development or scientific evidence that they would achieve the goals set forth by reformers. The primary purpose of BCPs is to transform individual attitudes and behavior to reduce recidivism. Since the implementation of the first BCP in 1984, a lot has been learned about core correctional practices and the principles of effective interventions (PEI) that may help to explain the successes and failures of BCPs.
