Ex-Convicts in an Official Role of Peer-Supporters: Toward Convict Therapy

• Published date: 01 November 2023
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X231159890
• Author: Ety Elisha
• Date: 01 November 2023
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X231159890

International Journal of

Offender Therapy and

Comparative Criminology

2023, Vol. 67(15) 1565 –1580

© The Author(s) 2023

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DOI: 10.1177/0306624X231159890

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Article

Ex-Convicts in an Official

Role of Peer-Supporters:

Toward Convict Therapy

Ety Elisha1

Abstract

The present paper focuses on the strengths-based role of the wounded healer, as

exemplified by current or released incarcerated people who desist from crime and

recover through professional practice of peer support, in the community or in prison.

The paper has two purposes. One is to review criminological approaches and models

related to peer-based rehabilitation and to encompass them under a single term

proposed here—Convict Therapy. The second is to review research on peer support

programs currently implemented in in various countries, in a bid to discern their

hallmarks and strengths. This to enrich and promote the discourse, research, and

practice of this evolving field, and to offer new research directions for examining the

effectiveness of peer support in the long run, for the aid providers, the recipients,

and the community.

Keywords

wounded healer, lived experience, peer support, peer-mentoring, convict criminology,

positive criminology, crime desistance, rehabilitation

Introduction

The high incarceration and recidivism rates in Western countries, especially the United

States (Fazel & Wolf, 2015), have led to the development of strengths-based pro-

grams, aimed at improving the chances of people involving in the criminal justice

system to desist g from crime, and re-integrating successfully into the community.

Researchers in the field of crime desistance have focused on the strengths-based role

1The Max Stern Yezreel Valley College, Israel

Corresponding Author:

Ety Elisha, Department of Criminology, The Max Stern Yezreel Valley College, Regional Council, Yzreel

Valley 1930600, Israel.

Email: etye@yvc.il

1159890IJOXXX10.1177/0306624X231159890International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative CriminologyElisha

research-article2023

1566 International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology 67(15)

of the wounded healer, .as exemplified by ex-convicts who desist from crime and

recover through the professional practice of supporting peers (Arrigo & Takahashi,

2006; LeBel, 2007; Maruna, 2001; White, 2000). Studies in this field suggest that

generative activities, such as volunteering, peer-mentoring, and rehabilitation work,

contribute to the personal rehabilitative path. Adopting a new identity of the “wounded

healer” (Esping, 2014), provides ex-convicts with opportunities for external validation

of their rehabilitation efforts, and to develop a positive self-identity—a key compo-

nent in reintegration process (Maruna et al., 2004).

However, a perspective that is often lacking in criminological research is that of

rehabilitated ex-convicts. Although the convict criminology movement, which emerged

some thirty years ago, aims to expand the criminology discipline through research

conducted by ex-convicts (Richards & Ross, 2003), it does not address the aspect of

rehabilitating people involved in the criminal justice system by peers, as discussed

here.

A literature review on the subject reveal that peer support is referred by different

terms, such as “wounded healers,” professional ex-prisoners, peer mentoring, peer

work, peer-to-peer support, and experts by experience (e.g., Bäcklin, 2022; Nixon,

2019). This multiplicity of terms may be confusing, and therefore it is advisable to

unite them under one theoretical framework, as proposed here. The proposed term of

convict therapy, encompass a range of criminological approaches and models empha-

sizing the strengths and abilities of ex-convicts who are willing to change their ways

through helping peers, based on their knowledge and experience, thereby promoting

their own rehabilitation efforts. These approaches—that of the wounded healer; desis-

tance from crime; recovery from addiction; positive criminology; and unified justice—

are presented here while underlining their commonalities in the context of recovery

through peer support. This with the aims to create a uniform language among research-

ers and practitioners in the field of rehabilitation.

The proposed term, convict therapy, refers to formal roles of peer support (either

voluntary or paid), performed by people involved in the criminal justice system, in

prison, and in the community. Note that this is not about providing mental health care,

but rather providing emotional and practical assistance, with the aim of improving the

well-being and functioning of peers. This, based on the knowledge and experience of

the aid providers. It should also be noted that this type of intervention is not a substi-

tute but an addition to the professional care, recognizing the advantage inherent in

people with lived experience with the phenomenon.

The second part of the paper presents an overview of peer support programs cur-

rently running in various Western countries, along with studies examined their

effectiveness, while highlighting their strengths and limitations. This is in order to

enrich the current knowledge, to promote the rehabilitative practice of this develop-

ing field, and to offer new directions of research to examine their long-term

effectiveness.