Unlocking Technology Use: Analyzing Client Engagement in Reentry Planning Technology

• In Event: Innovations in Reentry: Findings from an Evaluation of the Role of Technology in Reentry Planning

Abstract

Detailed administrative data on clients’ use of technology maintained by technology vendors is an untapped yet useful data source for assessing “dosage” of technological interventions in a manner that is not typically available for traditional, in-person programming. Information such as user logins, time spent using various features, tasks completed, courses begun, and content completed, can quantify exposure to programming of interest. This presentation leverages detailed administrative data obtained for a large, statewide sample (approximately 40,000 people incarcerated in NC DAC facilities) on the use of tablets and reentry planning software. Specifically, we explore individual-level and facility-level characteristics associated with greater likelihood of using tablets for educational/programming purposes during incarceration and of using the Pokket reentry planning software after release. Factors such as demographics, criminal history, risk level are explored as predictors of technology use, along with facility characteristics such as size, staffing, and security levels. Implications of the findings for correctional and reentry policy and practice are discussed.

Authors

• Jamie Newsome, RTI International

• Christine Lindquist, RTI International