The Science of Recidivism
Doug Hooley started his career in 1988 as a Deputy Sheriff assigned to the Corrections Division in Lane County, Oregon. He is now a captain in charge of a 507 bed facility, and serves on numerous criminal justice teams and boards. But perhaps most notably, he has gone through a conversion of thought regarding the inhabitants over which he presides.
Hooley had 15 years of correctional experience under his belt when superiors asked him to find out about a new way to reduce recidivism. He pretty much had his mind made up about how to handle prisoners, and says he was dragged “kicking and screaming” to the program to learn more. Hooley is not soft on crime, or a fan of “touchy-feely” efforts that yield no benefits. But, he learned a lot. For one, he learned that while most of us would not want to break the law because we would lose our freedom and reap the social embarrassment of incarceration, those are not things that keep the habitual offender from re-offending. Interesting.
Since the early 90s, sociologists and criminologists have been working to figure out what will keep the habitual offender from re-offending and have developed a successful series of programs that are changing lives and reducing recidivism. The program begins with an assessment to target the major issues that cause an individual to re-offend. Is it a fiscal need? Bad friends? Lack of self-control? Drug abuse? Etc. Basically, they're putting the effort where the need is, and although re-offenders have their individual issues, their are many that fall into each category.
From there, a corrections officer can tailor a program to combat the issues faced by the inmate, and often, they do not return to incarceration. Notably, the assessments are only given to inmates who have a high or medium risk for reoffending, and the program continues with intervention, motivators, and even practicing reactions and role playing about how to handle difficult situations. Then, upon release “the most important factor is ongoing support from the community,” says Hooley, and 2nd Chance Indiana is already there, with Trusted Mentors and others to provide the needed support, as it connects reentrants with all-important jobs and transportation so they can get to work.
All this information and training is provided by the National Institute of Corrections, which was created by the U.S. Congress in the 70s. The Institute has developed training modules for corrections professionals available on their site. Says Hooley, “Cutting recidivism requires change at almost every level. But these efforts can reduce the recidivism rate by 30-40%." Considering the current nine-year average for recidivism is about 70%, a widespread program like this could cut recidivism in half.
Sounds like a lot, I know. So many of these strategies are “counter-intuitive to a law-abiding, pro-social thinking correctional professional.’” says Hooley, “but Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom are finding that these programs work.” Considering the amount we spend on incarceration here, and the lives we could change if we develop a program that turns recidivists into law-abiding, tax-paying citizens, it seems a dereliction of duty not to at least give it a try—perhaps somewhere in a corner of our vast Indiana corrections system—just to see if it's possible.
Nancy