Commentary
Treating Mental Health Within Jails Should Start Beyond Jails
Jun 22, 2023
RAND Social and Economic Well-Being
Building safe, healthy, and thriving communities
RAND Social and Economic Well-Being tackles some of the most critical challenges facing today’s policymakers: fostering healthy and resilient populations and environments, strengthening a fair and effective justice system, and ensuring that individuals and communities can address inequities and prosper.
Informing the Agenda
RAND Social and Economic Well-Being works with the public and private sectors across disciplines to find and implement solutions to complex policy problems.
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Tackling Big Ideas
Our cross-disciplinary research teams are working on community and institution-based solutions for critical issues:
- Living a longer and better-quality life
- Adapting to climate change
- Ending persistent poverty
- Making technology work for communities
- Building resilience to disasters (e.g., pandemics)
- Improving access to justice
- Reducing social isolation and loneliness
- Stemming the tide of substance abuse
Cross-Cutting Expertise
A wide range of expertise gives us the tools and perspective to make connections to pursue deep systems analyses in key areas:
- Leveraging localism and regionalism for innovative policy solutions
- Balancing tradeoffs of regulation and deregulation
- Establishing good governance and accountability
- Reforming and strengthening civil society
Making a Difference
We are committed to not just being a leader in social and economic well-being research, but in ensuring that our work has a positive impact on the world.
Our cross-cutting research is housed in three programs:
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Community Health and Environmental Policy
How do we create conditions and environments that positively support health and well-being?
The Community Health and Environmental Policy program focuses on such topics as infrastructure, climate change, science and technology including commercial space policy, industrial policy, energy transitions, disaster response and resilience, community design, community health promotion, migration and population dynamics, transportation and broader environmental quality, as well as other policy concerns that are influenced by the natural and built environment, technology, and community organizations and institutions that affect well-being. Learn more about this program, which includes the RAND Climate Resilience Center and the Center on Housing and Homelessness in Los Angeles.
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Justice Policy
How do we create a justice system that is fairer, more efficient, and more effective?
The Justice Policy program addresses key policy issues in the criminal and civil justice systems: effective policing, extremism, access to justice, border security, corrections reform and recidivism, drug policy, the courts, and the role of corporate ethics and accountability. Learn more about this program, which includes the Drug Policy Research Center and the Center for Quality Policing.
As a part of the Justice Policy program, the Institute for Civil Justice is dedicated to making the civil justice system more efficient and more equitable.
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Social and Behavioral Policy
How do we actively promote policies, actions and behaviors that foster individual, family, household and social well-being?
The Social and Behavioral Policy program advances solutions to improve the effectiveness of economic and social programs; support marital and family well-being; raise people out of poverty, improve the lives of older adults, populations living with disabilities, and their caregivers; and further the positive development of children, youth, and young adults. The program also develops and evaluates prevention and treatment programs to address substance use and abuse, mental health, active and independent living, and other factors that are critical for well-being. Learn more
Stay Informed
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Media Inquiries
RAND Social and Economic Well-Being experts are available to the media on a wide range of topics.
Office of Media Relations(703) 414-4795
(310) 451-6913
media@rand.org
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