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Abstract: 

Restorative justice programs are often described as victim-sensitive, which means that their primary goal is to allow victims’ needs to be met. Because of the strong focus on victims, offenders’ needs have often overlooked. Recent research, however, shows that offenders see the value in restorative justice programs. To better understand offenders’ needs in restorative justice programs, this article summarizes the findings of the author’s dissertation on the initial encounters of offenders and victims in a victim offender mediation/dialogue program. How were offenders able to face their victims? What did they say? What topics were important to the offenders? This analysis provides valuable insight into how offenders participate in face-to-face encounters with their victims. Several implications for those working with offenders are discussed based on these findings.

Keywords: language

Affiliations:  1: University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.