Restorative Justice Dialogue: An Essential Guide for Research and Practice

by Mark S. Umbreit, Marilyn Peterson Armour

Although Restorative Justice Dialogue is not a long text, it is an impressive achievement. Each chapter is rich in content, as Umbreit and Armour blend theory, practice, empirical research, and case studies to discuss a range of topics from specific models of restorative justice to the role of facilitators in restorative justice dialogue. -- PsycCRITIQUES Restorative Justice Dialogue presents a thorough and comprehensive explanation and assessment of the current state of restorative justice in the world. --Journal of Social Work Values and Ethics [A]n evidence-based description of the history, practices, and future of restorative dialogue that is informed by the values and principles of law, social work, and spirituality. This is an impressive achievement. --Daniel W. Van Ness Prison Fellowship International, Washington, DC I know of no other book that provides such a complete review of the various and emerging restorative practices and the phenomenal growth of this movement worldwide. --David Karp , PhD Skidmore College The combination of two outstanding and widely recognized restorative justice researchers, practitioners, and authors has produced a text that is destined to be a major resource. --Katherine Van Wormer , PhD University of Northern Iowa This book provides a comprehensive foundation for understanding restorative justice and its application worldwide to numerous social issues. Backed by reviews of empirical research and case examples, the authors describe the core restorative justice practices, including victim-offender mediation, family group conferencing, and peacemaking circles, as well as cultural considerations, emerging variations in a wide variety of settings, and the crucial role of the facilitator. Together, authors Umbreit and Armour bring the latest empirical research and clinical wisdom to those invested in the research and practice of restorative justice. Key

352 pages, Paperback

First published June 22, 2010

Reviews

[Drick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book offers a comprehensive introduction to Restorative Justice, both the philosophy, principles, and values, as well as the logistics of carrying out a Victim-Offender Dialogue, a Family Group Conference, or one of the many varieties of peacemaking circles. The book addresses many of the complicating factors that confront RJ such as working within the criminal justice process, the unwillingness of key participants -- the person harmed and the person causing the harm --- to participate, power differentials, cultural and communication differences, racism, and historical colonialism. The book ends by discussing more recent innovations within the field and expansion to previously untouched areas.

While there is much to commend in the book, what grabbed my attention was Umbreit's introduction of chaos theory as a way of understanding an effective RJ process. Certainly, there must be learned about chaos theory's relevance to RJ but it was a promising and intriguing idea.

I greatly appreciated this book for its balance of philosophy, research, and praxis. This is a book I see myself going back to again and again.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I gave this book 5 stars because it was an incredibly informative fast read about the RJ process and different types of RJ programs. My biggest concern though was that it probably shouldn't have taken the author 325 pages to say what he needed to say, it could have easily been condensed, and a number of areas felt as if he was repeating the same things over and over again.
But as far as academic works go, i think this book was well-researched, well-planned, and for well-executed.
i would recommend.