Recidivism rates for those who completed boot camps were the same as for comparable offenders who were confined in traditional institutions for lengthy periods of time. This can be attributed to the fact that boot camps typically serve urban areas with a high percentage of minority youth. The NIJ researchers are concerned that the confrontational model is full of potentially abusive situations and is antithetical to the development of the kind of healthy, productive relationship with an adult that a youth needs to develop maturity. The suitability of boot camps for introducing therapeutic intervention was questioned, and it was also pointed out that the confrontational model is difficult, if not impossible, to monitor. Small, community-based facilities, on the other hand, have proved to be effective, both as an intervention with the juvenile offender and also in terms of cost to the provider.
Delinquents change their behavior when services are based on strengths and needs.
If youth are only offered what adults think they need, they will not accept assistance. Effective services will help youth set up their own notions of what they need and then make it possible for them to meet their needs through nondelinquent behavior. The services developed should be based on the individual strengths of the youth. A 1996 NIJ evaluation of juvenile boot camps had forcast these findings. It noted that the programs struggled to find disciplinary measures and a clear-cut termination policy that would not only have an impact on juveniles' negative behavior and attitudes, but would also contribute to their genuine rehabilitation.