Major Study Examines Prisoners and Their Reentry Needs
by Christy A. Visher, Ph.D., and Pamela K. Lattimore, Ph.D.
About the Authors
Dr. Visher is a principal research associate at the Urban
Institutes Justice Policy Center. Dr. Lattimore is a principal
scientist at RTI Internationals Center for Crime, Violence,
and Justice Research.
Key demographics were recently released from a study of reentry
programs under the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry
Initiative (SVORI)a Federal effort to help States use
their correctional resources to reduce
recidivism.[1]
Aimed at increasing public safety, SVORI is an unprecedented
national response to the criminal justice, employment,
education, health, and housing challenges that adult and
juvenile offenders face when they return to the community.
RTI International, a nonprofit research group, and the Urban
Institute, a nonpartisan economic and social policy research
organization, are conducting a 5-year evaluation of the
effectiveness of the SVORI programs. In the National Institute
of Justice-funded evaluation, researchers interviewed
prisoners at 16 sites, asking them shortly before they were
released what services they felt they would need. Here is
a summary of the demographics and responses of the SVORI
group (a sample of 935 men who received SVORI services) and
the comparison group (923 men who did not receive SVORI
services).[2]
Who Are the SVORI Men?
More than half of the men in the SVORI group are African
American, and nearly one-third are Caucasian.[3]
The majority of the SVORI group are neither married nor in
a steady relationship. The average age of the men is 29.
Sixty percent are fathers of minor children, and nearly
half of them reported having primary care responsibilities.
Less than two-thirds have completed 12th grade or earned
a high school equivalency degree.
Nine out of 10 men in the SVORI group reported having a
job at some point in their lifetime, and nearly two-thirds
said they were employed during the 6 months before their
incarceration. They typically held blue-collar jobs,
serving as laborers, service workers, equipment operators,
and skilled craftspeople.
Nearly half reported that they had supported themselves in
part through illegal activities, and more than two-thirds
reported perpetrating violence during the 6 months before
they were incarcerated. Eighty-three percent served prior
prison terms. The majority of the group reported having
family members and friends who had been convicted of a
crime or had problems with drugs and alcohol.
The SVORI Men Define Their Needs
Part of the evaluation of the SVORI programs is based on
prisoners responses to questions about the services they
need after they are released from prison. The most
commonly reported reentry needs were more education,
general financial assistance, a drivers license, job
training, and employment.
Nearly three-quarters of the SVORI group reported needing
transportation assistance and better money-management skills.
More than half said they needed some of the most basic and
immediate needsfood, clothing, and a place to
livealong with basic identification (birth certificate,
Social Security card, and photo ID card) and financial
assistance. Those who had minor children also reported a
need for parenting classes and child care, help with child
support payments, and help resolving custody issues.
When asked what health services they needed upon release,
three-quarters identified health care insurance and more
than half identified medical treatment. It is important
to keep in mind that many reported needs are intertwined.
For example, when a former prisoner applies for medical
insurance or treatment, he is also likely to need
identification and possibly transportation.
The majority of the SVORI group seemed to recognize some
aspect of their own behavior that they need to change to
improve their lives after they are released. Almost
two-thirds reported needing to work on their personal
relationships, and more than half said they needed a mentor
and spiritual or religious assistance. One-third reported
needing anger management training.
Over the next 2 years, additional findings will be released.
These will be based on interviews with the SVORI group and
the comparison group at 3 months, 9 months, and 15 months
postrelease. The interviews will include drug testing at
the 3- and 15-month marks, which will offer critical data
not only on postrelease drug use, but also on the
consistency of self-reported information. Additional
analyses will examine recidivism and other outcomes at 12
and 24 months postrelease.
NCJ 219609
Charts
SVORI GROUP DEMOGRAPHIC HIGHLIGHTS
|
- Average age 29 years
- 56% African American
- 32% Caucasian
- 4% Hispanic
- 83% served prior prison terms
- 52% had been incarcerated in juvenile correctional facility
- 62% completed high school or GED
- 60% with children under age 18
- Of those with minor children, 49% have primary care responsibilities of children
- 37% in a steady intimate relationship
- 8% married
|
What education and employment experience do they have? |
Education/Employment Experience |
% of Respondents |
Ever held a job |
89 |
Held a job during 6 months pre-prison |
64 |
High school graduate or GED |
62 |
Expect to return to a previous job |
56 |
Never held a job for more than 1 year |
42 |
How did they support themselves pre-prison? |
Method of Support |
% of Respondents |
Partly through illegal activities |
45 |
Mostly through illegal activities |
39 |
Help from family |
32 |
Help from friends |
18 |
What experience have they had with violence? |
Experience With Violence |
% of Respondents |
Perpetrated violence during 6 months pre-prison |
69 |
Victim of violence during 6 months pre-prison |
59 |
Victim of violence during incarceration |
56 |
What experience have their friends and family had with criminal behavior? |
Friends/Family Criminal Behavior |
% of Respondents |
Friends have been convicted of a crime or incarcerated |
84 |
Friends have drug or alcohol problems |
82 |
Family members have been convicted of a crime or incarcerated |
78 |
Family members have problems with drugs or alcohol |
72 |
MOST REQUESTED REENTRY NEEDS
|
- 94% More education
- 86% General financial assistance
- 83% Drivers license
- 82% Job training
- 80% Employment
|
What health services do they need? |
Health Service |
% of Respondents |
Health care insurance |
76 |
Medical treatment |
57 |
Alcohol or substance abuse treatment |
38 |
Mental health treatment |
23 |
What family services do those with minor children need? |
Family Service |
% of Respondents With Minor Children |
Parenting classes |
61 |
Help with child support payments |
45 |
Child care |
40 |
Help resolving child custody issues |
36 |
What other services do they need? |
Service |
% of Respondents |
Transportation assistance |
73 |
Money-management skills |
71 |
Access to food or clothing banks |
62 |
Identification (e.g., birth certificate) |
56 |
Financial assistance from government |
53 |
A place to live |
52 |
Legal assistance |
46 |
What attitude and behavior help do they need? |
Attitude/Behavior Support |
% of Respondents |
Change attitude about criminal behavior |
65 |
Improve personal relationships |
64 |
Mentoring |
60 |
Spiritual or religious assistance |
52 |
Anger management |
36 |
Sidebar
WHAT DO THE SVORI PROGRAMS OFFER?
SVORI funding supports a three-phase service continuum that
focuses on reentry preparation: (1) just prior to release
from prison, (2) during the first few months postrelease,
and (3) for several years postrelease as participants take
on more productive and independent roles in the community.
There are 89 adult and juvenile SVORI programs, which
offer such services as life-skills training, dental and
medical services, needs and risk assessments, treatment
and release plans, and job placement.
The following charts, based on a survey of SVORI program
directors in 2005, show the percentage of adult SVORI
participants that received particular types of services
in prison (prerelease) and after they were released.
Notes
[1] |
SVORI is funded
by the U.S. Departments of Justice, Labor, Education,
Housing and Urban Development, and Health and Human
Services. |
[2] |
The evaluation
also includes interviews with adult female prisoners
and juvenile males. This article, however, discusses
only the adult males in this study. |
[3] |
Although this
article presents statistics for the SVORI group
only, responses from the comparison group were
similar in terms of demographics and types of
services needed. |