A Behavioral Systems Approach to a Brazilian Restorative Justice Organization

Restorative justice (RJ) corresponds to a set of actions, programs, and practices to promote a more autonomous conflict resolution process. RJ includes involving all individuals who have interest in a particular conflict, seeking reparation for the harm caused to the victim and accountability by the offender, and identifying antecedent or consequent conditions that could be related to such conflicts. This practice is being implemented in Brazil’s justice system as part of a national public policy in an attempt to solve conflicts in a more autonomous fashion, which in turn could reduce the time and cost produced by traditional justice procedures. The main objective of this article is to analyze a Brazilian public organization that works with restorative practices according to the perspective of Behavioral Systems Analysis (BSA). Toward this objective, tools such as Total Performance System (TPS) and metacontingency, and intervention models such as the Behavioral Systems Engineering Model (BSEM) were combined with a literature review to analyze organizational practices. Results suggested gaps between the prescribed public policy and its actual implementation. Some aspects of the analysis are highlighted, including the lack of operationalization of monitoring criteria by the control agencies of the judiciary system and the absence of feedback regarding the service (both by the users of the service and those interested in its delivery). Recommendations such as implementation of a data control system, are provided with the aim of ensuring the success of this organization and the effective implementation of the public policy.