Participatory Research in Prisons: A Process Evaluation of Community Engagement of Incarcerated People in a Multi-Site Prison Research Initiative

• In Event: Community-Engaged Methods in a Prison Setting: Lessons from the Prison Research & Innovation Initiative

Abstract

Active participation of those being studied is essential to research that authentically understands the needs and goals of those directly impacted. Following the ethics of creating research with and for the people most directly affected by the conditions being studied, the Prison Research and Innovation Initiative (PRII) aims to both engage incarcerated people, staff, state and local actors as partners in the research process and subsequently study the successes and challenges of this approach. PRII has undertaken a multi-year process evaluation aimed at exploring the conception and implementation of various participatory research practices. This paper will discuss how incarcerated people perceive the efforts of this project, how they were engaged in developing questions for a multi-year climate survey, and the success, challenges, and lessons learned when conducting community engaged work within a prison environment. This study analyzes data from interviews conducted in 2021 and 2024 with people incarcerated in four state prisons engaged with the project. The results from this study can be used to understand participatory approaches to research in prisons while also identifying strategies that can yield more credible findings and recommendations for future community-engaged research.

Authors

• Evelyn McCoy, Urban Institute

• Sam Tecotzky, Urban Institute