Offender Recidivism and Employment - Essay Example

aper aims to discuss about offenders on supervision and how their employment status determines their success on supervision and their recidivism on re-offending. Determining the proper response to the re-offending behavior of criminals has plagued governments, criminologists, the judiciary, and the community for some time. A precise figure for the rate of recidivism cannot be ascertained, as much crime goes unreported and the courts do not convict all offenders for various reasons, including lack of evidence.

Rates of recidivism also depend on what measures are used in terms of the time frame considered and whether one is concerned about particular offences, re-arrest rates, or re-imprisonment. There are many factors that contribute to the re-offending behavior of an individual. Many prisoners have poor education and employment histories, experience greater rates of mental illness and bad physical health, and have issues associated with drug and alcohol misuse. The effect of prison or jail sentences on recidivism is an important issue to those concerned with public safety and the cost-effectiveness of putting convicted offenders in prison.

Opinions are divided between those advocating longer sentences in the interest of public safety, and those advocating shorter sentences with the assumption that incarceration, or longer prison terms, will not reduce recidivism rates. This paper summarizes the theories and the empirical studies on this issue. Study findings indicate that the effect of incarceration (versus other sentencing options) and sentence length on recidivism is complex and is likely to be offender-specific. For some offenders, incarceration and longer confinement seem to increase the risk of recidivism.

For other offenders, the likelihood of re-offense will either be unaffected or reduced by longer terms of incarceration. Furthermore, early-release programs do not appear to affect overall recidivism rates. It is well recognized that offenders have a high