Activities and programmes of juvenile punishment

The activities and programmes are carried out according to the handbook compiled by the Criminal Sanctions Agency and the training based on the handbook. The used time and method varies individually. Other programmes approved by the Criminal Sanctions Agency, such as group-form anger management and traffic safety courses, are also used to some extent. The aim is to support the young offender to change by influencing issues related to recidivism.

Motivation

Motivating discussions, which consist of five themes, can be carried out before the discussions about criminality. The issues dealt with the young offender include the ability to recognise the problem related to committing offences and the willingness and need to change. In addition, the young offender's readiness to decide to change is discussed and a plan to realise it is drawn.

Criminality

The discussions about criminality cover issues such as the attitude of the young offender or people close to him or her towards criminality, the consequences of the offences, and the search for options. The connection between substance use and offending is also reviewed. Furthermore, the discussions deal with the problematic situations more widely and help to solve problems and express opinions without insulting others. The discussions about criminality consist of eight themes.

Development of social skills

Based on the needs of the young offender, this programme teaches and trains social skills, such as helping others, expressing empathy, or responding to peer pressure. There are ten different skills trained in this programme.

Anger management

Discussions about anger management consist of seven themes, which help in learning to reduce and control anger. The discussions teach to recognise the development of anger and, thus, to master one's own behaviour, and reflect on the consequences of aggressive behaviour.

Traffic behaviour

The four themes of the traffic behaviour discussions first review the traffic offences. The discussions are then expanded to cover traffic safety and the reasons for the offences and alternative behaviour models.

Substance use

After an initial evaluation, the discussions on substance use can proceed in two alternative ways. They can be carried out as the mentioned motivation discussions by assessing the young person's ability to recognise the problem related to substance use, willingness and need to change, readiness to decide to change, and plan to realise the change. Alternatively, the discussions on substance use can include giving more information about intoxicating substances and treatments, as well as considering the different aspects of substance use, the risks involved in it, and the connection between substance use and offending.

Society

The goal of discussing issues concerning the society is to promote the young offenders reintegration to the society. The issues include debts, work, education, basic municipal services, protection under the law, military and non-military service, and living in Finnish culture. The issues are chosen based on the needs of the young offender. The applied method is the same problem solving model, which was used earlier in the discussions about criminality.