Organizational Cooptation or Social Change? A Critical Perspective on Community-Criminal Justice Partnerships

Nancy Jurik, Joel Blumenthal, Brian Smith, Edwardo L. Portillos

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

13 Scopus citations

Abstract

This article develops a critical approach to community-criminal justice partnerships. Drawing on case study data from one community partnership program developed by university administrators and staff from a state juvenile corrections department, we explore the strengths and weaknesses of increasingly popular partnership strategies for preventing and reducing crime. This partnership aimed to develop a transitional service center in which university personnel and community members worked with paroled youth in mentoring and community service projects. Through the analysis of the competing goals and implementation struggles in this case, we consider the validity of conflicting positive and negative perspectives on criminal justice partnerships. Our multilevel analysis reveals the innovations and limitations of a partnership approach. We demonstrate that to fully understand both the potential and dangers of partnership models, it is essential to consider the structural, organizational, and interactional levels of a project's emergence and implementation.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)293-320
Number of pages28
JournalJournal of Contemporary Criminal Justice
Volume16
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2000

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Law

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