Dr. Paul McCold is the Director of Research for the International Institute for Restorative Practices, Bethlehem, PA.  He was the principal investigator for the “Bethlehem Experiment”, the first randomized field trial of restorative conferencing in the U.S.  

Currently, Paul develops university curriculum materials on restorative justice. He also publishes research findings on restorative practices to engage the academic community in the  development of restorative justice theory.  

Since 1992, Paul has committed his career to restorative justice, describing himself as a restorative justice research practitioner. He brings a decade of experience as a research criminologist for New York State to the field.

Paul received a Ph.D. in Criminal Justice from the University at Albany in 1993. He concentrated his studies on Planned Change in Criminal Justice and the Administration of Criminal Justice.

Paul  McCold's academic affiliations include

• Assistant Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice of Temple University

• Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice of Old Dominion University,

• Adjunct Professor at the School of Criminal Justice of the University at Albany.

In addition these academic activities, he is a Real Justice certified trainer and experienced conference facilitator. 

An active member of the International Network for Research on Restorative Justice for Juveniles (Belgium), Paul is one of the signers of the Declaration of Leuven. He also represents the Friends World Committee on Consultation of the Religious Society of Friends at the Alliance of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (NY). He was a member of the Alliance’s Working Party on Restorative Justice from 1995-2000.

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On average, victims and their offenders rate programs which include their communities of care (i.e. conferences) as more satisfying and fair than those that do not (i.e. victim-offender mediation). 

One should always try to involve victims, offenders and their communities of care in responses to crime. New restorative program design should

begin by trying to serve as many of the direct stakeholders as possible

begin to replace existing partly or mostly restorative practices with fully restorative practices.

Those restorative practices which include all direct stakeholders, such as conferences and circles, should constitute the bull’s-eye on the restorative justice target.

(Adapted from. “Restorative justice theory validation.” by Paul McCold and Ted Wachtel. Paper presented to the Fourth International Conference on Restorative Justice for Juveniles. International Network for Research on Restorative Justice for Juveniles, Tübingen, Germany, October 1-4, 2000.)

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Leading Edge. One of Paul’s current interests is on the informal use of restorative practices and its everyday use in

• schools,  

• community corrections,

• organizational practices

• international relations.

He continues the quest for what he calls “a culturally universal grand unifying theory of restorative justice” applying equally to micro and macro social processes.

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Reach Paul McCold at   pmccold@aol.com.

Bibliography