NCJ Number
218972
Journal
Journal of Offender Rehabilitation Volume: 2/3 Issue: 44 Dated: 2006 Pages: 31-53
Date Published
2006
Length
23 pages
Annotation
This study examined youth offenders’ perceptions of the various challenges involved in their transition or their coping strategies upon release from correctional institutions back into the community.
Abstract
Most participants professed to have the goals of avoiding reincarceration and exercised both logistical planning and mental determination to achieve these goals. However, even with mental preparation and exercising of restraint, certain aspects of their transition experience appeared to shape their short-term reentry experiences. The major elements that emerged, when the mental resolve to “do better” was tested, were “support” and the use of “selective involvement” with old influences as a risk reduction strategy. Future research should look in-depth at this transition period of community reentry and the coping strategies that youth employ to manage the obstacles and influences that may impede their short and long-term success. Over the years, researchers have investigated risk factors for recidivism among juvenile offenders who are released from correctional institutions. In their research, they found that the first few months of community reentry were a critical time period for youth offenders to establish routines and support systems that could reduce the likelihood of recidivism. This study examined the challenges that were both anticipated and experienced by youthful male offenders as they exited corrections and reentered their communities. The study described the strategies that youth offenders used to cope with crime temptations and influences that tested their determination to avoid reincarceration. These findings offer critical information for those seeking to implement a continuum of effective treatment, transition, and aftercare programs for incarcerated youth. Table, references