Probation Service Systems in Turkey and Several Countries: A Comparative Study in the Context of Substance Misuse

Probation services are the leading organization among basic institutions supervising legal consequences of substance misuse. This system is applied in many European countries for hundreds of years while Turkey has a relatively newer system, starting from 2005, compared to more developed countries. This study is a narrative review on probation services including comparison of probation systems in different countries as well as literature findings of several studies on probation due to substance misuse. In this study, it is aimed to discuss probation services in different countries in the world in a comparative way in terms of scope, history, institutional structure, and psychosocial interventions; probation work in prison services; victim services, volunteer workers, pre-sentence reports, victim-offender mediation, in-service trainings, and spe- cialized drug courts within probation system since there are similarities and differences which can be clas- sified under those headings between Turkey and other countries. The difficulty in drawing firm conclusions for people under community supervision is illustrated in studies on treatment for substance misuse. It is seen that there are many similarities and differences also in probation systems in different countries. Probation services are important contact points for substance users with several services provided. It is also stated that probation services are increasingly involved in measures such as drug/alcohol treatment.

Cite this article as: Altın, D., Şaşman Kaylı, D., & Yararbaş, G. (2022). Probation service systems in Turkey and several countries: A comparative study in the context of substance misuse. Addicta: The Turkish Journal on Addictions, 9(2), 225-231.