The Research and Training Institute of the Ministry of Justice initially addressed this issue in the White Paper on Crime 1978 and White Paper on Crime 1988.
  The White Paper on Crime 1978 pointed out that the proportion of repeat offenders to the total number of persons convicted for penal code offenses had overall decreased in general under the conditions of economic prosperity at the time. On the other hand, it also revealed that there were a small number of offenders who were repeatedly committing offenses. Its conclusion stressed that appropriate measures for preventing recidivism were required and through the promotion of rehabilitation and reintegration of repeat offenders into society, recidivism will be reduced, thereby enhancing the safety of the public.
  The White Paper on Crime 1988 first gave an overview of the general situation with recidivism over the ten years since the 1978 White Paper. It then observed that the overall tendency with the proportion of repeat offenders to the total number of persons convicted for penal code offenses had remained at almost the same level since 1978, but in regard to those imprisoned, the number of repeat offenders who committed offenses many times and offenders who were admitted to penal institutions repeatedly, and the number of middle aged and elderly offenders had increased. Based on these facts, it focused upon repeat offenders with many criminal records (hereinafter referred to as “multiple repeat offenders” in this part) and those with a history of repeated imprisonments. It then analyzed problems regarding the disposition and treatment of those offenders by researching their circumstances and attributes, their sentencing, and the actual treatment they received. In summary it was revealed that multiple repeat offenders had not committed the same type of offenses, but rather had committed various and different types of offenses in accordance with opportunity. It was also pointed out that multiple repeat offenders were likely to have committed their first offense before reaching 25 years of age. In conclusion, after touching upon the modality of the sentencing and diversification of their treatment, the papers emphasized the importance of early intervention and the need for an effective social re-entry support system as effective measures in preventing recidivism.