4.4: Importance of Evidence Based Practices
[1] In the 1980s, numerous research studies were published that contradicted this claim and proposed alternative approaches to combating crime and effective interventions. Since then, countless researchers, agencies, and even Congress have adopted the need to create comprehensive evaluations of effective programs.
[2] National research clearinghouses are great resources for systematic literature reviews of effective public programs across a plethora of areas, such as:
- the U.S. Department of Education’s What Works Clearinghouse,
- the U.S. Department of Justice’s CrimeSolutions.gov,
- Blueprints for Healthy Youth Development,
- the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Registry of Evidence-Based Programs and Practices,
- the California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare,
- What Works in Reentry, and the Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy.
[3] The goal is to create a policy that can be enforced consistently and can withstand political change.