Criminology Research Council grant ; (24/93-4)
Council funding supported the development of a videotape titled Another Way, which was broadcast on SBS television in May 1997. The video included interviews with inmates in the Alternatives to Violence program in Moreton Correctional Centre in Queensland, to examine complex negative behaviours that accounted for the imprisonment of the cohort of program participants.
The results of this work showed that the Alternatives to Violence program functions effectively to increase a sense of empathy and connection between participants. Over a period of years, as multiple workshops were held in Moreton Correctional Centre with a population of considerable stability, this had some positive effects on the overall atmosphere of the correctional centre. This conclusion was endorsed by inmates, custodial staff and the programs manager. This effect was possibly increased by the fact that a number of custodial and programs staff had also done the workshops. Even though these workshops were run separately, several people noted the sense of "common ground" that this created in a way that is unusual in correctional centre culture.