Compassionate Release: A Call to Social Workers
Published:
| Author: Mary-Louise Parkkila, Stephanie Prost, Stephen Tripodi
An increase in the number of older people incarcerated in prisons has given rise to increased costs of correctional health care. Despite the many benefits of compassionate release, it is rarely used. Citing barriers at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels, we contend that social workers are uniquely suited to increase the number of people released through this mechanism owing to a unique knowledge and skill set.
Category: Social Work, Incarceration, Research
Service Utilization & Death Among Individuals with Incarceration Histories
Published:
| Author: Tanya Renn, Christopher Veeh, Stephen Tripodi, Carrie Pettus-Davis, Megan Vogt
Individuals releasing from prison have a higher death rate than the general population. Few studies have explored pre-incarceration service utilization and health among those who die after prison. This paper fills the gap by exploring service usage and health trends among individuals who died and those who survived.
Category:
Looking Beyond Recidivism: New Research on Well-Being in Prisons and Jails From the National Institute of Justice
Published:
| Author: Stephen Tripodi
At the National Institute of Justice’s (NIJ) 2023 National Research Conference, Sanchez led a discussion on corrections research that looked beyond preventing recidivism to explore evidence-based ways of improving individual experiences and institutional culture within prisons and jails. The conversation was a direct outgrowth of Sanchez’s belief that services focused on improving people’s lives after prison cannot come at the expense of efforts to expand their opportunities while inside.
Category: Criminal Justice System, Criminal Justice Reform, Well-Being
Behavioral Health Interventions for Incarcerated Adults With Histories of Trauma: A Scoping Review
Published:
| Author: Melissa D. Grady, Stephen Tripodi, Lauren Herod, Michael Rudzinski
The majority of incarcerated individuals have experienced traumatic events in their lifetime, contributing to related behavioral health issues, including post-traumatic stress, mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders. The purpose of this article is to understand the existing state of the literature through a scoping review on correctional-based programs that address both trauma and behavioral health.
Category: Trauma, Mental Health, Substance Use
Behavioral health literacy: A new construct to improve outcomes among incarcerated individuals
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus, Stephanie Kennedy, Tanya Renn, Stephen Tripodi, Lauren Herod, Danielle Rudes, Faye Taxman
In the United States, nearly 13 million adults are incarcerated in prisons and jails annually with significant negative public health consequences. Incarcerated individuals have disproportionate rates of behavioral health disorders (BHDs); untreated BHD symptoms bring people into incarceration settings and are associated with re-arrest after release.
Category: Incarceration, Mental Health, Reentry, Substance Use
Promoting Smart Decarceration as a Grand Challenge
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus, Stephen Tripodi, Oluwayomi Paseda
A resurgence of scholarship on transforming the criminal justice system and reducing the overreliance on incarceration occurred during the first decade of the 21st century. This scholarship situated the expansive reach of the criminal justice system and the need for reform within the realities of structural racism and pervasive substantial health and social disparities. Redburn, et al. 2014 focuses on the effects of mass incarceration on individuals and society as a whole, while Epperson, et al.
Category: Smart Decarceration
To What Extent Is Criminal Justice Content Specifically Addressed in MSW Programs? A 10 Year Review and Update
Published:
| Author: Phillipe Copeland, Christopher Collins, Shelby Pederson, Stephen Tripodi, Matthew Epperson
This study examined the prevalence and types of criminal justice content being offered in Council on Social Work Education programs. Data were collected through questions sent via e-mail to program administrators and content analysis of school websites for three hundred and eight MSW programs. Criminal justice content was measured in three main areas: (a) dual- or joint-degree options, (b) concentrations or specializations, and (c) courses. The results show that most MSW programs do not cover criminal justice content.
Category: Criminal Justice System, Social Work
Study protocol paper for the multisite randomized controlled trial of comprehensive trauma informed reentry services for moderate to high-risk young males releasing from state prisons
Published:
| Author: Carrie Pettus, Tanya Renn, Stephen Tripodi, Sarah Tamburri
This study will provide critical information about how trauma-informed reentry programming impacts traditional reentry outcomes (e.g., recidivism, housing, employment) and identify key mechanisms of action (e.g., reduced impulsivity and aggression). Coping with trauma symptomatology is a largely untapped area of scientific inquiry for criminal justice-involved populations, despite the significant role trauma plays in individuals’ lives. Results advance identification of critical components of trauma-informed reentry interventions for moderate- to high-risk young men.
Category: Trauma, Reentry, Well-Being, Community
Trauma-Based Intervention for Adults Releasing from Jail
Published:
| Author: Stephen Tripodi, Tanya Renn, Carrie Pettus, Elizabeth Curley, Laura Bedard
Learn more about an innovative trauma-based intervention delivered to individuals releasing from a local jail in Florida. This report highlights all aspects of the study, showcases participants' perceptions of participation in trauma-based programming, and presents data on how the intervention affected participants' well-being and behavioral health after completion.
Category: Trauma
Trauma Informed Care Groups with Incarcerated Women: Comparing Seeking Safety and STAIR
Published:
| Author: Stephen Tripodi, Michael Killian, Matt Gilmore, Elizabeth Curley, Lauren Herod
Almost all incarcerated women have experienced at least one lifetime traumatic event that often leads to limited coping skills and mental health problems. This study evaluated two different trauma-informed care groups for incarcerated women – Seeking Safety and STAIR – and found that participants who participated in either program had significant improvements in anxiety, depression, and coping self-efficacy. Results indicate the importance of screening for trauma and offering correctional-based programming to address trauma before release
Category: Trauma, Incarcerated Women
Traumatic experiences before incarceration in a county jail
Published:
| Author: Stephen Tripodi, Elizabeth Curley, Sierra Ross
This report describes the traumatic experiences of individuals prior to their incarceration in a county jail. Nearly 70% of study participants experienced a traumatic event in the year prior to their incarceration, with the majority of those affected reporting more than one traumatic event. Among study participants, 24% were violently assaulted, 15% lost a loved one to homicide, 18% witnessed a serious injury or death, 26% experienced a serious health incident, and 35% received news of the death or injury of a loved one.
Category: Trauma
Smart Decarceration Practice Behaviors for Social Work Competencies
Published:
| Author: Phillipe Copeland, Daniel Jacob, Diane Young, Annie Grier, Stephanie Kennedy, Stephen Tripodi
This tool was conceived by a members of the “Promote Smart Decarceration” Grand Challenge Education Working Group to provide guidance for social work administrators, instructors, and students on how to effectively incorporate “smart decarceration” as a focus for social work education using the CSWE social work competencies.
This tool incorporates smart decarceration-related practice behaviors for ready application into both classroom curricula and field practicums.
Category: Grand Challenges, Smart Decarceration
Pathways to Recidivism for women released from prison:A Mediated model
Published:
| Author: Stephen Tripodi, Carrie Pettus-Davis, Kimberly Bender, Michael Fitzgerald, Tanya Renn, Stephanie Kennedy
Findings showed no direct relationship between childhood trauma and reincarceration for women in the sample, although there was a significant mediated relationship from childhood trauma to depression to reincarceration. Results suggest the importance of addressing incarcerated women’s trauma before release, assessing for depression, and using empirically-supported interventions to treat depression when applicable.
Category: Incarcerated Women, Reentry
The Quality of Life Perception Gap in Prison Health Care Settings
Published:
| Author: Stephanie Prost, Stephen Tripodi, Jeffrey Lacasse
Peer caregivers are specially-trained incarcerated persons who support the needs of patients in correctional health care settings. Their role is of particular importance in light of the growing population of older adult prisoners with complex health problems in U.S. prisons. The purpose of the current study was to examine the disparity between patient and peer caregiver ratings of patient quality of life in a sample of correctional health dyads (n = 52) in a state prison system.
Category: Well-Being
The Intersectional Effects of Race and Gender on Time to Reincarceration
Published:
| Author: Katie Ropes Berry, Stephanie Kennedy, Margaret Lloyd, Christopher Veeh, Stephen Tripodi
People of color are disproportionately incarcerated and reincarcerated after release. In an 8-year analysis of more than 21,000 individuals leaving state prisons, Black men were incarcerated more often and more quickly when compared to all other race/gender groups. However, with two exceptions (age at intake and marital status), Black men had lower risk scores on most variables when compared to other members of the sample. The interaction of race and gender was a potent predictor of time to reincarceration, even when controlling for a range of identified risk factors.