Credentialing Decisions and Criminal Records: A Narrative Approach*

Abstract

Decision makers such as employers and state occupational licensing officials are often encouraged or required to incorporate evidence of rehabilitation into hiring decisions when applicants have criminal records. Current policy movements at the local, state, and federal levels may increase the use of such individualized assessments. Yet little is known about which types of information these decision makers use, how they evaluate evidence, and how they ultimately make determinations. We examine a sample of 50 unarmed security guard licensing decisions in New York State using content analysis. We find that administrative law judges rely on a narrative framework to document whether applicants currently have a prosocial identity and merit licensure. Judges typically describe one of two prosocial identity narratives for successful applicants: The applicant demonstrates achieving meaningful change, or his or her criminal record represents an aberration. Two factors seem vital to these assessments: applicants’ postconviction trustworthiness, as demonstrated through good conduct or inferred through positive appraisals, and credible testimony. In narrative explanations, personal responsibility and adult milestones are often discussed, reflecting a judicial nod to the notion of a “transition to adulthood.” The results hold implications for scholars and policy makers examining employment barriers, stigma remediation, and collateral sanctions for individuals with criminal records.

Time Well Spent: Misery, Meaning, and the Opportunity of Incarceration

“…(Kewley 2017;Polaschek 2016;Serin, Chadwick and Lloyd 2016). The next 20 years of corrections research could continue to ask more than just what reduces recidivism and could acknowledge that people make decisions based on someone's trustworthiness, credibility, and responsibility, rather than simply their assumed objective risk to recidivate (Denver and Ewald 2018).…”

Criminal Records, Positive Employment Credentials, and Race

“…For example, Maruna and colleagues (2004) described how having “legitimate” sources as personal references, especially if the sources are outside a job applicant’s immediate inner circle, can speak to a person’s character and qualities. Character reference letters from previous employers who are aware of the person’s criminal record can serve as an important source of trustworthiness in information-limited decision contexts (Denver and Ewald 2018).…”

“…In addition to a no-credential control condition, where the MTurk worker did not receive any additional information, positive credentials included: (1) involuntary completion of a job skills training program; (2) voluntary completion of a job skills training program; (3) an occupational license to be a barber, which is formally awarded by a state agency; and (4) a reference letter from a previous employer, which verified a positive work history and stated that the employer would be willing to rehire the applicant if given the opportunity. We informed respondents that each credential was obtained after the applicant was convicted, since the temporal ordering of events can alter the perceived value of positive credentials (Denver and Ewald 2018). For the reference letter condition, we note that the employer knew about the applicant’s conviction when he or she wrote the letter.…”

“…The fourth and final credential condition, a positive reference letter from a prior employer, was chosen because it may provide a legitimate source of trustworthiness about the job applicant to decision makers (Denver and Ewald 2018). Individuals who are perceived to be prosocial, “moral” citizens—particularly if they are knowledgeable about a person but are not part of their inner circle of family or friends—can vouch for that person’s prosocial identity (Maruna et al 2004) while also verifying the quality of the person’s abilities and skills.…”

Where Is This Story Going? A Critical Analysis of the Emerging Field of Narrative Criminology

“…Some forms of this narrative co-production --including creative engagement with writing and other art forms inside prisons or treatment programs -simply encourage individuals to explore the stories they live by without imposing limits on new expressions of the self (see Albertson, 2015;Colvin, 2015;DeValiant, McGrath, & Kougiali, 2020). In other circumstances, the co-production process can be more coercive, including the pressures placed upon individuals to adopt "self-blame" narratives (Denver & Ewald, 2018) in therapeutic, court or parole settings (see Fox, 1999;Harding et al, 2017).…”