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Dog training programs (during incarceration)

Adult Criminal Justice
  Literature review updated June 2024.

Dog training programs in prison facilities provide the opportunity to develop training, grooming, and general animal care skills through study and hands-on experience. They are vocational programs intended to build knowledge and skills for future employment and to provide a community service. Programs include those training service dogs to assist individuals with disabilities and those training shelter dogs for adoption-readiness. Some programs lead to certification (e.g., master groomer, pet care technician, service dog trainer). Programs vary in duration and intensity. Group classes are typically taught by experienced trainers in a prison setting.
 
ALL
META-ANALYSIS
CITATIONS

Meta-analysis is a statistical method to combine the results from separate studies on a program, policy, or topic to estimate its effect on an outcome. WSIPP systematically evaluates all credible evaluations we can locate on each topic. The outcomes measured are the program impacts measured in the research literature (for example, impacts on crime or educational attainment). Treatment N represents the total number of individuals or units in the treatment group across the included studies.

An effect size (ES) is a standard metric that summarizes the degree to which a program or policy affects a measured outcome. If the effect size is positive, the outcome increases. If the effect size is negative, the outcome decreases. See Estimating Program Effects Using Effect Sizes for additional information on how we estimate effect sizes.

The effect size may be adjusted from the unadjusted effect size estimated in the meta-analysis. Historically, WSIPP adjusted effect sizes to some programs based on the methodological characteristics of the study. For programs reviewed in 2024 or later, we do not make additional adjustments, and we use the unadjusted effect size whenever we run a benefit-cost analysis.

Research shows the magnitude of effects may change over time. For those effect sizes, we estimate outcome-based adjustments, which we apply between the first time ES is estimated and the second time ES is estimated. More details about these adjustments can be found in our Technical Documentation.

Meta-Analysis of Program Effects
Outcomes measured No. of effect sizes Treatment N Effect sizes (ES) and standard errors (SE) Unadjusted effect size (random effects model)
ES SE Age ES p-value
Prison misconduct
Criminal or deviant behavior during incarceration. Misconduct is often associated with violating policy within a prison or secure facility.
33 1 484 -0.202 0.063 34 -0.202 0.001

Citations Used in the Meta-Analysis

Van Wormer, J., Kigerl, A., & Hamilton, Z. (2017). Digging deeper: Exploring the value of prison-based dog handler programs. The Prison Journal, 97(4), 520-538.