Recidivism Rates

“The second solution is concerned with recidivism rates. Initiative should be taken to improve and expand on existing reformation and educational programs, for both incarcerated offenders and those on probation or parole. This would benefit each group by improving the probability that they will not re-offend once released. Defying the words of sociologist Robert Martinson, who in 1974 came to the conclusion that ‘nothing works,’ many studies have shown that properly designed reformation and educational programs do indeed benefit offenders, and as a result, the American prison system. In fact, one study reported that prisoners who take part in ‘college-in-prison’ programs are 48% less likely to return to prison—if effective post-secondary educational programs were available in nearly every prison across the United States, recidivism rates would fall (Oakford et al., 2019). There would also be many subsidiary benefits, such as beneficial additions to the workforce, heightened self-esteem and confidence in individuals, and an expected decrease in tax costs, as prison populations would be expected to decrease.”