“Just Don’t Pick it Up”: Pre-release Planning of Incarcerated Men With Substance Use Disorders

• In Event: Treating Justice-Involved Persons for Substance Use and Misuse

Abstract

The majority of incarcerated individuals screen as having a substance use disorder (SUD), and SUDs contribute significantly to the risk of recidivism post-release. Given this, prisons should be focused on providing quality treatment programming for SUDs and helping soon-to-be reentrants plan effectively and realistically for their release. This research explores how incarcerated men with SUDs plan for their reentry period, focusing specifically on their plans for staying abstinent from substances for those who identify sobriety as a post-release goal. These plans are assessed for 88 incarcerated men who participated in a prison-based Therapeutic Community treatment program utilizing in-depth interviews conducted in the months before their release dates. Findings include a strong reliance on agency and willpower, resistance to the disease model of addiction, artificial implementation of recovery “tools,” and a high stakes view of post-release abstinence. These findings highlight important policy implications regarding the philosophy of SUD treatment in US prisons and how shifting these philosophies could lead to more realistic reentry expectations and plans.

Author

• Kim Davidson, Florida State University