Desistance from Crime over the Life Course

• In Event: Prisoner Reentry: Trends and Desistance

Abstract

In this study, we are examining the factors associated with desistance from crime among a group of male and female offenders in one state who participated in an evaluation of the effectiveness of the Serious Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) in 2004–2007. We conducted interviews about 12 years following the release related to the previous study and an average of 20 to 25 years after the first arrests for these individuals. We used a life event calendar approach to the interviews to capture information about events linked to desistance, including transformative events and evidence of transformation. We plan to use growth mixture models and latent transition analysis to identify classes of offending trajectories and to examine the factors associated with desistance, including services and indicators of cognitive transformation. Preliminary findings and policy implications will be presented.

Authors

• Kelle Barrick, RTI International

• Pamela K Lattimore, RTI International

• Debbie Dawes, RTI International