Annually, over half a million prisoners are released back into the community. It is important to identify and implement evidence-based strategies within prisons to aid in inmates' re-entry. An impressive knowledge base exists describing the effectiveness of these strategies, but much less is known about the barriers that impede participation in much needed programming. In this paper, we triangulate quantitative and qualitative data obtained from a sample of over 200 state prison inmates in a southern state. Our results show that there is significant interest in many prerelease programs among the inmates, but that several important barriers preclude their participation and/or continuation in these programs. Implications for policy are discussed.
Prison-based programs have been shown to reduce recidivism and aid successful reentry. Participation in prison programs has also been linked to reduced misconduct within prisons. And yet, programs are not always readily available and, even when they are available, some inmates may not be motivated or interested in participating in them. Using data collected from a private Southern prison, this study examined barriers and motivational factors related to participation in prison programing among a sample of 212 male inmates. Our results indicate that two of the barriers assessed, lack of space in the programs and programs not offered often enough, limited participation. Higher perceptions of prison legitimacy, interest in programs, and higher self-esteem were associated with higher levels of participation.
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