Mara Schiff believes that interviews are central to restorative justice, including victim-offender mediation, family group conferencing, circle sentencing, reparative probation and others. These interventions are sometimes referred to as restorative justice processes. The aim is to humanise the justice system by increasing contact between victims and offenders and by involving victims, offenders, and the community equally in the justice process. Victim-Offender Mediation is designed to allow victims and offenders an opportunity to reconcile and mutually agree on reparation. Victim-Offender Mediation cases typically deal with property crimes such as theft, burglary, criminal damage, or vandalism.
Most offenders see the incident as opportunistic and express regret.
Family Group Conferencing Mara Schiff contends is a promising restorative intervention institutionalised in New Zealand and Australia and being experimented with elsewhere. There is however, little research on Family Group Counseling and little systematic data collection is occurring that might facilitate such comprehensive evaluation. What we know about restorative interventions is that some, such as Victim-Offender Mediation, seem to have a positive impact on offenders. Moreover, available research indicates that compliance rates are good, suggesting that offenders hold themselves accountable for accomplishing agreed-upon goals. There is some evidence of leniency at court following restorative interventions.