The thesis aims to highlight successful stories of female ex-offender reentry into the community. Success, rather than failure, seems to be a current research gap in reentry literature. To gain an insight on the matter, semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with seven female ex-offenders. These women had previously taken part of the program, Exodus Ministries in Dallas, Texas. Systematic Text Condensation (STC) was utilized to analyze the qualitative data from the interviews. The results were then discussed in a theoretical framework in regard to previous research. Two theories were utilized; namely, the theory of “making good” by Maruna (2001) and the theory of cognitive transformation by Giordano, Cernkovich and Rudolph (2002). In conclusion, the results of the thesis point to reentry programs, such as Exodus Ministries; motherhood; religion; fundamental life changes; identity transformation and utilizing resources as essential factors needed for successful reentry into the community upon release from institutionalization.

No / The Silences Framework and its underpinning concept of ‘Screaming Silences’ was originally presented with the invitation for further peer review and utilisation in other contexts in order to test its usefulness and enable critique by a wider audience. This paper reports the use of the framework in a study researching nurse-led interventions for released ex-offenders. Screaming Silences were situated in how an issue, as experienced by ex-offenders, screams out to them in relation to their health and its impact on their reality while remaining silent in the consciousness of society and the application of practice. In addressing these Screaming Silences, we associated the Silences Framework within marginal discourses as they are less prioritised by policy and frequently positioned as far removed from what society considers as normal. Screaming Silences were situated in the subjective experiences of ex-offenders known as the ‘listener’ and the social and personal context in which these experiences occurred. We affirmed that the framework is ideally suited for researching issues which are under-researched, silent from policy discourse and excluded from practice, as it is oriented towards exploring individual experiences by valuing individual interpretations of events.

The current context of offender health in England and Wales indicates that offenders re-enter their communities with limited pre-release preparation for the continuity of access to healthcare and an increased risk of release with a health condition and very little support to cope in the community. This study was aimed at mapping the ex-offender health pathway towards identifying ‘touch points’ in the community for the delivery of a nurse led intervention. The study was a qualitative case study underpinned by ‘The Silences Framework’ which enabled it to gain theoretically by situating power with offenders, thus, aiding their ‘Silences’ to be heard, explored and brought to light. Participants meeting the study inclusion criteria were quantitatively ranked on the basis of poor health with those scoring the lowest and confirming their ranking through a confirmation of a health condition selected as cases and interviewed over the course of six months. These interview narratives were confirmed by interviewing individuals in the professional networks of offenders. The study identified the site of post-release supervision as the ‘touch point’ where a nurse led intervention could be delivered. With regards to the delivery of the health intervention, the study indicated that the nurse led intervention be provided as an advisory and signposting service structured on a drop-in and appointment basis. Furthermore, the study indicated that pre-release, offenders were not prepared in prison for the continuity in access to healthcare in the community on release. On-release, offenders’ on-release preparation did not enquire as a matter of procedure on whether offenders were registered with a GP or had the agency to register self with a GP practice in the community. Post release, the study uncovered a disparity between services which address the physical health needs of offenders and those which address their mental and substance misuse health needs.

The concept of social innovation is increasingly becoming a subject of interest particularly due to the challenges associated with the crisis of the welfare state. The high rate of ex- offending is an example of a current challenge and mentoring is a social innovation which seeks to take up this challenge. The main goal of this thesis is to interrogate the process of social innovation using mentoring of ex-offenders as an example and to explore mentoring and its implementation within the Czech Republic. The theory of the process of social innovation, as documented in the overseas literature, guided the extensive research conducted in Czech non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that provide mentoring approach. The empirical part of this thesis provides a valuable insight into the process of social innovation from NGO perspective. It includes a comprehensive description of developmental stages of the process as well as highlights the limitations that NGOs encounter in implementing mentoring in the Czech Republic.

Successful reintegration of ex-offenders is difficult for most, evidenced by high recidivism rates. Ex-offenders face a broad range of obstacles once released from prison, including personal, social, and employment barriers. This study was an examination of the issues that contributed to a successful or unsuccessful reintegration as reported by ex-offenders. Participants included 10 ex-offenders who participated in interviews regarding the conditions that they believed were necessary for successful community reintegration. The conceptual framework for this study came from the ecological perspective, also known as the person-in-environment theory. Data collection involved one-on-one interviews with the participants. Data analysis was conducted through a line-by-line analysis of the responses, which resulted in disclosure of themes and patterns about their life experience. The key findings from the study suggest that older African American women, once released from prison, need additional support to reintegrate into their communities. Key findings include a need for housing, employment, and community involvement. The social change implications of this study may provide for positive social change if professionals working in the criminal justice system with older individuals are made aware of the hardships this population faces, such as finding housing and employment. The information from this study could be instrumental in how reintegration specialists, social workers, and policy makers create reintegration plans and programs for women in addition to creating programs that are specifically geared toward meeting the needs of older women.

The employment of persons with criminal records has become an increasingly important issue in the Western world. Literature on Canadian hiring practices in relation to persons with criminal records, however, is severely lacking. This thesis aims to make a significant contribution to the field of criminology by investigating how employers evaluate the employability of persons with criminal records, as well as their attitudes and perceptions towards this population. Through eight open-ended and low-structured interviews with owners and/or hiring managers in the city of Ottawa and using the theoretical framework of H. Blumer’s (1969) symbolic interactionism (SI), E. Goffman’s (1963) stigma, and J. Braithwaite’s (1989) reintegrative shaming for analysis, this thesis attempts to gain insight into the barriers and challenges of professional integration for persons with criminal records. This study ultimately revealed that: (1) criminal record verifications were seldom used among employers to check for past convictions; (2) employers were willing to hire persons with criminal records (under specific conditions); and that (3) employability was based primarily on whether the candidate in question had the skillset required for the position, making the criminal record a secondary consideration. Contrary to popular belief, the results also suggest that while employers may be socially aware of this stigma, not all engage in stigmatizing and/or shaming behaviour towards persons with criminal records during the hiring process. Further, it is often the case that when making decisions, employers must decide between catering to the needs of their business or hiring a prospective candidate despite their criminal record. This study opens new avenues of inquiry concerning persons with criminal records and professional reintegration while proposing future directions for research. RÉSUME La réinsertion professionnelle des personnes judiciarisées est un sujet qui a acquis une grande importance dans le monde occidental. Toutefois, la littérature détaillant les pratiques d’embauche des employeurs Canadiens est limitée. Cette thèse vise donc à contribuer au champ de connaissance sur le sujet. Elle a pour objectif d’analyser comment les employeurs évaluent l’employabilité des personnes avec un casier judiciaire, leurs attitudes ainsi que leurs perceptions de cette population. Sur la base de huit entretiens ouverts et non-structurés avec des propriétaires et/ou responsables du recrutement dans la ville d’Ottawa et en utilisant le cadre théorique de l’interactionnisme symbolique d’H. Blumer (1968), la théorie du stigmate d’E. Goffman (1963) ainsi que celle du reintegrative shaming de J. Braithwaite (1989), cette thèse aspire à une meilleure compréhension des obstacles dans la réinsertion professionnelle des personnes avec un casier judiciaire. Cette étude révèle que (1) la fréquence des vérifications des casiers judiciaire est rare, (2) que les employeurs désirent embaucher les personnes judiciarisées (mais sous certaines conditions) et (3) que l’employabilité est basée principalement sur les compétences requises pour le poste. Le casier judiciaire devient donc une considération secondaire. Ces résultats suggèrent que même si les employeurs sont conscients du stigmate, un comportement stigmatisant or humiliant envers les personnes avec un casier judiciaire n’est pas la norme lors du processus d’embauche. Lors de la décision finale, le dilemme des employeurs porte davantage sur les besoins de leur entreprise versus ceux du candidat que sur le casier judiciaire de ce dernier.

Text in English / The issue of offenders’ re-integration has become an important topic to the Department of Correctional Services in South Africa due to high number of incarcerated individuals who need to return back into the society as law abiding citizens. Around the world, scholars have researched about offenders’re- integration. However, they tend to focus on adult ex-offenders, neglecting young adult male ex-offenders’ experiences of the family re-entry process. Scholars neglected that the consequences of being incarcerated at a young age (age 19-34) puts young people at overwhelming risks of future incarceration, unemployment, poor physical and mental health. Therefore, this study focused on seven young adult male ex-offenders in Sekhukhune district, aged between 24 and 34 years who returned to their families after incarceration. Participants were selected using purposive sampling and volunteer self-selection sampling, through the assistance of Tswelopele Ex-Offenders Forums in Sekhukhune area. This study explored, described and interpreted the meaning, benefits, challenges and coping strategies of the young adult males in regard to their family re-entry processes. This goal was achieved by adopting the interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA) research design and conducting individual semi-structured interviews with the young adult ex-offenders. The IPA data analysis guidelines were followed to analyse data and the Person-environment (P-E) fit theory grounded this analysis as the emerging themes were further interpreted in light of the assumptions of this theory. The findings show that the process of family re-entry was an emotional rollercoaster for the young men concerning moving forward post their incarceration. They specifically experienced different moments of ambivalence, which was due to reuniting with family members on the one hand, but having to rely on family members for support, on the other hand. While being back in the family led to emotions of happiness and satisfaction, not being able to meet their family expectations and to perform the roles expected of people of their age led to various negative emotions, including sadness and anxiety. / Psychology / M.A. (Research Consultation (Psychology))