NCJ Number
44462
Journal
Monatsschrift fuer Kriminologie und Strafrechtsreform Volume: 60 Issue: 3 Dated: (JUNE 1977) Pages: 133-152
Date Published
1977
Length
20 pages
Annotation
A STUDY OF THE SOCIAL INTEGRATION OF RELEASED 'LIFERS' IN GERMANY SHOWS THAT MOST EXPERIENCED AN IMPROVEMENT IN SOCIAL STATUS COMPARED TO THE PERIOD PRECEDING THEIR INCARCERATION, BUT THAT ADJUSTMENT PROBLEMS CAN ARISE.
Abstract
THIS PAPER PRESENTS DATA BASED ON THE EXAMINATION OF THE SOCIAL SITUATION OF ALL 'LIFERS' RELEASED FROM PRISON IN LOWER SAXONY (GERMANY) BETWEEN 1945 AND 1973. FOR MANY OF THE PARDONED CONVICTS THEIR RELEASE WAS CONNECTED WITH AN UPWARD CHANGE IN SOCIAL STATUS, WHILE A DOWNWARD SHIFT WAS EXPERIENCED BY ONLY A FEW--MOSTLY THOSE WHO HAD ENJOYED A HIGHER SOCIAL STATUS PRIOR TO IMPRISONMENT. MOST OF THE EX-CONVICTS IMPROVED THEIR INCOME AND FOUND MORE SATISFYING JOBS THAN BEFORE INCARCERATION. THESE ARE THE TWO MAIN REASONS FOR THE HIGH RATE (OVER 90 PERCENT) OF POSTINSTITUTIONAL LAW-ABIDING CONDUCT. THE IMPROVED SOCIAL SITUATION IS THE RESULT OF THE CHANGED JOB STRUCTURE AND THE GENERAL ECONOMIC PROSPERITY IN POSTWAR GERMANY DURING THE 1950'S AND 1960'S. A STUDY OF EX-CONVICTS IMPRISONED FOR DIFFERENT LENGTHS OF TIME SHOWS THAT THE LENGTH OF IMPRISONMENT HAS NO INFLUENCE ON THEIR CONDUCT AFTER THEIR RELEASE. HOWEVER, LONG-TERM IMPRISONMENT DESTROYS THE PRISONER'S ABILITY TO FIND HIS WAY INTO SOCIETY, AS HIS POTENTIAL FOR SOCIAL ACTIVITY DIMINISHES, HIS FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS BREAK UP, AND, CONSEQUENTLY, DIFFICULTIES DURING THE INTEGRATION PROCESS INCREASE. SO FAR, THE GRANTING OF PARDONS HAS BEEN QUITE ARBITRARY, FAVORING NAZI CONVICTS AND DISCRIMINATING AGAINST MEMBERS OF LOWER SOCIOECONOMIC GROUPS. THE POLITICAL DEMANDS FOR A LEGAL LIMIT TO LIFE SENTENCES AND MORE EFFECTIVE REHABILITATION PROCEDURES TO HELP LIFERS OVERCOME SOCIAL AND OTHER OBSTACLES APPEAR JUSTIFIED IN LIGHT OF THESE DATA. REFERENCES ARE CITED; TABLES AND STATISTICS ARE PROVIDED. --IN GERMAN. (ING)