Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to gain understanding about the effectiveness of a forensic peer support program’s impact on reducing criminal recidivism. People with histories of mental illness returning to the community following incarceration face tremendous challenges in jails and prisons and in successful reentry to community. Transitioning from jails and prisons is fraught with additional challenges such as reconnecting or connecting with mental health and substance abuse treatment, finding adequate housing, finding employment, reuniting with family and friends, etc. Unfortunately, recidivism remains high, principally because of these challenges. Many state and local authorities have supported the development of the forensic peer specialist.
Design/methodology/approach
Kaplan–Meier survival analyses were conducted to examine time to re-incarceration.
Findings
The population served was determined to be a particularly high risk of re-incarceration population, when released from prison. All had a mental illness diagnosis, with 80 percent diagnosed with at least one serious mental illness, and more than 50 percent had three or more anterior incarcerations. Utilizing Kaplan–Meyer survival analysis, the chance of re-incarceration for participants after one year was of 21.7 percent. Surprisingly, in the first year after release from prison, participants did much better than those in the general US prison population when in terms of re-incarceration rates (21.7 percent vs 43.4 percent).
Originality/value
While preliminary findings of this approach, this study reaffirms the idea that forensic peer support programs are beneficial in reducing recidivism rates for people diagnosed with a mental illness coming out of prison, offering individuals supports to maintain their lives in the community.
Crime and violence are serious issues in informal settlements around the world. To date, there is a dearth of evidence about the causes of and effective strategies for reducing and preventing violence and crime in informal settlements in cities in the Global South. Additionally, women’s voices are often absent from research focused on violence and crime prevention and reduction in informal settlements. The purpose of this study, therefore, was (1) to identify potential causes of violence and crime in informal settlements, as perceived by women living in Mathare informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya and (2) to highlight residents’ strategies for response and prevention. Fifty-five in-depth and walk-along interviews were conducted with women living in Mathare in 2015-2016. A modified grounded theory approach was used to guide data collection and analysis. The most common contributor to violence and crime identified by women in Mathare was idle youth, but leadership and government challenges, corruption and/or inadequacy of police, community barriers, tribalism, and lack of protective infrastructure also emerged as contributing factors. Despite facing many economic, environmental, and day-to-day challenges, women in Mathare identified violence and crime as predominant issues; thus, developing effective response and prevention strategies to these issues is paramount. Women discussed many strategies and initiatives to reduce and prevent violence and crime in informal settlements, but also identified barriers to implementing them. Findings suggest there is a need for trust-building between formal and informal sectors of the community, systems of accountability, and long-term investment to foster sustainable and effective violence and crime response and prevention in these settlements.
Around one billion people live in informal settlements, globally, including over half of Nairobi, Kenya’s three million residents. The purpose of this study was to explore women’s fear of victimization within Mathare, an informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya and how fear of victimization influences behavior. Fifty-five in-depth interviews were conducted with women in 2016. A modified grounded theory approach guided data collection and analysis. Findings suggest fear of victimization is a serious concern in informal settlements. Women have found ways to adopt their behaviors that allow them to continue to function and protect their children despite fearing victimization, but at a potential cost to their health and well-being. Thus, there is a critical need for more research focused on social, economic, structural, community, infrastructure, technological, and individual strategies to prevent violence, enhance residents’ sense of safety, and, subsequently, minimize women’s fear of victimization in informal settlements.
The perception of excessive use of force by law enforcement towards minorities has become an increasing focus of attention in the national media and public consciousness. With greater ability to record conflicts using smartphones and dissemination of videos via social media, the public may more readily judge the circumstances of law enforcement interactions. The purpose of this study was (a) to understand the general sentiment about law enforcement on social media among communities of color in Chicago, (b) to see if local or national incidents of police conflicts with people of color were mentioned, and (c) identify key themes within these social media posts. Publicly available social media posts were collected from four ethnically and socioeconomically diverse neighborhoods in Chicago. Using a five-person team and keyword searches, the posts were reviewed for content and abstracted if they pertained to law enforcement. They were then analyzed in stages of open, axial, and selective coding methods. Eight main themes were identified. These included the following: (a) law enforcement participation in the community, (b) law enforcement activity in the neighborhood, (c) posts regarding criminal activity, (d) immigration, (e) political protests against police, (f) African American men and law enforcement, (g) sympathy with Sandra Bland case, and (h) #Blacklivesmatter. There appears to be chasm of trust between law enforcement and communities of color. Our findings may help inform law enforcement, public policy-makers, and social workers in their efforts to better address these issues and to institute policies and interventions that not only bridge this gap but also strengthen and empower these communities.
The purpose of this study was to identify potential causes of violence and crime in informal settlements and residents’ strategies for response and prevention to these issues, as perceived by women living in Mathare informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya. A total of 55 in-depth interviews were conducted with women living in the informal settlement in 2015-2016. A modified grounded theory approach was used to guide data collection and analysis. The most common contributor to violence and crime identified by women in Mathare informal settlement was idle youth, but leadership and government challenges, corruption and/or inadequacy of police, community barriers, tribalism, and lack of protective infrastructure also emerged as contributing factors. Despite facing many economic, environmental, and day-to-day challenges, women in Mathare identified violence and crime as predominant issues; thus, developing effective response and prevention strategies to these issues in informal settlements is paramount. Women suggest there are many strategies and initiatives to reduce and prevent violence and crime in informal settlements, but also identified barriers to implementing them. Findings suggest there is a need for trust-building between formal and informal organizations and institutions, systems of accountability, and long-term investment to foster sustainable and effective violence and crime response and interventions in these settlements.
Around one billion people live in informal settlements globally, including over half of Nairobi, Kenya’s 3 million residents. The purpose of this study was to explore women’s fear of victimization within Mathare, an informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya and how fear of victimization influences women’s behaviors. Fifty-five in-depth interviews were conducted with women in 2015–2016. A modified grounded theory approach guided data collection and analysis. Findings suggest fear of victimization is a serious concern in informal settlements, but women have found ways to adapt their behaviors to cope and to continue to function and protect their children despite fearing victimization.
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