NCJ Number
213428
Journal
Forum on Corrections Research Volume: 17 Issue: 1 Dated: June 2005 Pages: 15-20
Date Published
June 2005
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This literature review examines research on the ability of employment status to predict reoffending and the effectiveness of various instruments in making such a prediction.
Abstract
The cumulative research shows that an offender's being unemployed is a moderately strong predictor of reoffending. The following instruments were found to be most effective in measuring whether or not an offender will have a satisfactory employment history likely to help prevent reoffending: Australia Work Ethic, Intrinsic Job Motivation, Occupational Self Efficacy Work Beliefs, and Work Involvement. The author also notes that a significant amount of research has shown that the best predictor of job success is the General Aptitude Test Battery. He also recommends that future research on the employment-reoffending link focus on assessments of the offenders' values, beliefs, interests, and satisfactions related to employment and the acquisition of occupational skills, since these factors are apparently the key to a person's employment history. Sixty-seven studies were identified as suitable for this review. Among the studies were those that assessed males only or mixed-gender samples, adult or mixed adult/juvenile samples, subjects with mixed risk levels, offenders with a violent or sexual offense history, and studies with a 1-year or greater follow up period. Seventy-five percent of the outcomes measured included conviction, incarceration, or a combination thereof; and 82 percent of effect sizes involved nonviolent reoffending. 3 tables and 16 notes