e compulsive quest for status weakens community by pitting people against one another as competitors while at the same time encouraging frantic conformity to the shifting group fashions that set the terms on which status is granted (Wrong, p. 76). Individuals in communities are so driven by their need for status that it becomes pathological. The community itself becomes sick as individuals vie for a higher rank. It is unfortunate that the weak suffer the most from this because others, trying to achieve, trample them. Criminal offenders usually enter this rat race near the bottom of the ladder. It is therefore of little surprise that an offender usually cannot compete against this strong drive for status. When conventional methods of obtaining status fail, an individual is likely to consider criminal or quick fix behaviors. In addition, Wrong is talking about how the standard to conform to is continually in flux. Since true conformation occurs when individuals agree to an accepted set of underlying values and the standard to conform to is constantly changing, it is near impossible secure these standard values. Most individuals in a community are only conforming outwardly to the accepted standard because their underlying value system is much more stable than the dynamic view of status. Overall, this creates a difficult situation for an offender who is trying to re-connect with society. It is much like trying to merge on a super-highway, at eighty miles an hour, in rush hour, on a tricycle. Something usually gets crushed.Just because a situation seems impossible does not mean a community is not responsible to make at least an attempt, which many programs do admirably. The State of New Jersey has implemented versions of these programs with a good degree of success. New Jersey uses a blend of programs in an attempt to maximize their benefits. Boot camps and SIs along with prison simulations such as Scared Straight, try to awaken...
