The development of the therapeutic community in correctional establishments: a comparative, retrospective account of the 'democratic' Maxwell Jones TC and the 'hierarchical' concept-based TC in prison

Abstract

Background: The corrections-based therapeutic community (TC) is one of the most described treatment modalities for (substance abusing) incarcerated offenders. The origins and development of the therapeutic community have been traced back to two independent traditions: the American hierarchical concept-based TC and the British “democratic” Maxwell Jones-type TC. Both branches have developed independently, targeting different people and tackling diverse problems. Aims: To demonstrate that there are clear and undeniable similarities between the ‘two’ prison-based therapeutic communities. Method: A comparative historical review of the literature and a critical discussion and comparison. Results: The links between the democratic and hierarchic therapeutic communities are summarized under five headings: social learning and behavioural modification; permissiveness and modeling; democracy and hierarchy; communalism and community as method; reality testing and ‘acting as if’. Conclusions: The ‘two’ correction-based therapeutic communities are on converging pathways. Far from being oppositional models, they can be regarded as being complementary.