Thinking About Corrections : Recidivism

Reducing Recidivism: A Review of Effective State Initiatives

Eileen Conway — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:04:00 GMT

A new report, issued by Justice Strategies and commissioned by the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition, will be presented today at a hearing before the Colorado legislative Judiciary Committees. While addressed to the Colorado audience, Reducing Recidivism: A Review of Effective State Initiatives discusses efforts and evaluative research in several states, with particular emphasis on Maryland's Proactive Community Supervision program.

What Contributes to Recidivism?

Eileen Conway — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:10:00 GMT

The Urban Institute has released a double whammy examining factors contributing to recidivism. Working in collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Corrections, the Massachusetts Recidivism Study contains three interrelated study components addressed in two new reports. Massachusetts Recidivism Study: A Closer Look at Releases and Returns to Prison analyzes DOC administrative data and recidivism on a variety of statistical and demographic fronts. Its companion report, Reincarcerated: The Experiences of Men Returning to Massachusetts Prisons examines the results of parole office focus groups, as well as interviews of returning recidivists.

Violence Prediction - In the Institution, and After Release

Eileen Conway — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 14:47:00 GMT

How well do risk assessment tools predict institutional violence or violent recidivism? Once again, Canada's Public Safety department takes a thoughtful look at an important question. In the newly posted report, Assessing the Utility of Risk Assessment Tools and Personality Measures in the Prediction of Violent Recidivism for Adult Offenders, authors Campbell, French, and Gendreau conduct a meta-analysis of studies examining the effectiveness of tools such as the LSI-R, VRAG, SIR, HCR-20,and PCL-R, with conclusions regarding which may be more reliable predictors of violence during incarceration or after release.

October 23rd update - according the the Public Safety Canada site, the authors of this report are correcting errors they have identified, and a revised version will be posted when it is available. Until then, the report is not available.

April 30, 2008 update - the revised report has now been posted and is available here.

Reentry in a Nutshell for Decisionmakers

Eileen Conway — Thu, 24 May 2007 15:06:00 GMT

We appreciate in-depth research, but we're even more appreciative when that research is summarized beautifully for speedy review. The Urban Institute has gone one better by releasing a concise summary of research that it hasn't even published yet. Returning Home: Exploring the Challenges and Successes of Recently Released Texas Prisoners summarizes in two pages a forthcoming report on the experiences of former inmates in the first year back in the community, with key findings regarding program participation, employment, substance use, and supervision and recidivism.

Returning Home: How Can Reentry Be Improved?

Eileen Conway — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 17:40:00 GMT

The Urban Institute has been examining reintegration issues in a series of in depth reports, Returning Home: Understanding the Challenges of Prisoner Reentry. A new release, One Year Out: Experiences of Prisoners Returning to Cleveland, details the challenges offenders face in real life and identifies factors associated with reintegration success and failure.

What Works in Assessing Sex Offender Recidivism Risk

Eileen Conway — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 16:52:00 GMT

How does professional clinical judgment stack up against actuarial measures in assessing which sexual offenders will offend again? Canada's Public Safety department takes on this question in a new meta-analysis of evaluations. Results can be read in the report, The Accuracy of Recidivism Risk Assessments for Sexual Offenders: A Meta-Analysis.

Does Prison Harden Inmates?

Eileen Conway — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 15:21:00 GMT

With a tip of the hat to Mike Connelly's excellent Corrections Sentencing blog, which further credits the Prevention Works blog from the National Crime Prevention Council, we find an intriguing, newly released academic study, Does Prison Harden Inmates?: A Discontinuity-Based Approach. Examining the effect of prison conditions on recidivism rates, the authors find that "harsher prison conditions lead to significantly more post-release crime."