Restorative Justice: A Systematic Review of the Social Work Literature

Restorative justice is an alternative paradigm for dealing with the effects of crime and wrongdoing that seeks to bring healing to victims, offenders, and the community. Although a key element of social work's ethical code is the obligation to work toward social justice, this has been viewed pr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Families in society 2009-01, Vol.90 (1), p.119-126
Main Authors: Gumz, Edward J., Grant, Cynthia L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alternative Approaches
Codes of conduct
Crime
Criminal Justice
Ethics
Healing
Offenders
Professional practice
Restorative justice
Social justice
Social Work
Social workers
Systematic review
Victims
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Summary:Restorative justice is an alternative paradigm for dealing with the effects of crime and wrongdoing that seeks to bring healing to victims, offenders, and the community. Although a key element of social work's ethical code is the obligation to work toward social justice, this has been viewed primarily as efforts to ensure a fair distribution of resources and opportunities. Yet justice is also restorative in nature–-seeking to restore and enhance victims, offenders, and communities to fuller functioning. This article systematically reviews 80 social work peer-reviewed articles dealing with restorative justice. The role of social workers in restorative justice programs remains largely unknown. Suggestions are made for enhancing social work practice in the restorative justice arena.
ISSN:1044-3894
1945-1350
DOI:10.1606/1044-3894.3853