For whom does a transitional jobs program work?

• Author: Janine Zweig,Cindy Redcross,Jennifer Yahner
• Published date: 01 November 2011
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-9133.2011.00767.x
• Date: 01 November 2011

RESEARCH ARTICLE

TRANSITIONAL JOBS PROGRAM

For whom does a transitional jobs program

work?

Examining the recidivism effects of the Center

for Employment Opportunities program on former

prisoners at high, medium, and low risk of reoffending

Janine Zweig

Jennifer Yahner

Urban Institute

Cindy Redcross

MDRC

Each year, more than 700,000 individuals are released from prisons nationwide

(Sabol, West, and Cooper, 2009). Many former prisoners have lengthy criminal

backgrounds and struggle to avoid recidivating while reintegrating into the

communities to which they return. A person’s criminal history,age, and gender all contribute

to the likelihood of future crime (Gendreau, Little, and Goggin 2006; Levinson, 2002).

Among released prisoners, younger males with extensive criminal histories are often at

greatest risk of future recidivism (Langan and Levin, 2002).1

This research paper was prepared by the Urban Institute and MDRC as part of the Enhanced Services for the

Hard-to-Employ project funded by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of

Labor through Contract Number HHS-233–01–0012. The authors thank David Butler, Dan Bloom, and Charles

Michalopoulos of MDRC; reviewers from the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation in the Administration

for Children and Families; and reviewers from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation.

The opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the

official position or policies of the Department of Health and Human Services, or of the Urban Institute, its

trustees, or its funders. Portions of this article were reported to the Department of Health and Human Services

in the form of a research brief as per contractual obligations. Direct correspondence to Janine Zweig, Urban

Institute, 2100 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037 (e-mail: jzweig@urban.org).

1. As was the case in this study, released prisoners across the United States tend to be a relatively older

(age 30 years and older) group with a higher number of prior arrests (more than seven) (Langan and

Levin, 2002). Thus, when one talks about “younger” individuals with “extensive” criminal histories being

DOI:10.1111/j.1745-9133.2011.00767.x C2011 American Society of Criminology 945

Criminology & Public Policy rVolume 10 rIssue 4

Research Article Transitional Jobs Program

According to social control theories, employment helps prevent criminal activity by

providing individuals with legitimate ties to conventional society (Piehl, 2003; Sampson

and Laub, 1993). Relatedly,social capital theorists argue that the interpersonal relationships

individuals form through employment—the positive social networks—can aid desistance

from criminal behavior (Baron, Field, and Schuller, 2001; Boeck, Fleming, and Kemshall,

2008; Evans, 2002; Farrall, 2004). Indeed, research has shown that stable employment

is an important predictor of postprison reentry success (Visher and Travis, 2003; Visher,

Winterfield, and Coggeshall, 2005). Using a multistate longitudinal design, Visher and

colleagues found that former prisoners who worked more weeks and had higher earnings

the first few months after release were less likely to be reincarcerated 1 and 3 years after

release (Visher and Courtney, 2007; Visher, Debus, and Yahner, 2008; Yahner and Visher,

2008).

It is also widely believed that program intervention soon after prison release can be

critical to long-term reentry success (see, e.g., Baer et al., 2006; Johnston-Listwan, Cullen,

and Latessa, 2006; Solomon et al., 2008). Accordingly, programs across the country have

focused on finding jobs for former prisoners after their release. However, the results from

previous evaluation efforts have shown that such employment programs have limited ability

to reduce recidivism. Meta-analyses of employment programs for former prisoners have

found little if any effect on postprison criminal activity (Aos, Miller,and Drake, 2006; Visher

et al., 2005). Yet, many studies included inthese meta-analyses had limited methodological

designs and those with the most rigorous designs were conducted decades ago. For example,

Uggen’s (1999) oft-cited reanalysis of the National Supported Work Demonstration relied

on data collected in the 1970s.2Consequently, Visher et al. (2005) called for stronger

evaluations of more current employment programs, specifically pointing to programs that

provide transitional jobs as those in most need of rigorous evaluation.

Although some past research has shown that subsidized work programs for youth do

not promote noncriminal behavior (e.g., Bushway and Reuter, 2002; Piliavin and Masters,

1981), transitional jobs models have emerged as a promising approach to intervention

at greatest risk of recidivism, it is important to understand that the meaning of these descriptors varies

from their use among a general population. What is equally important to understand, however, is that

prior research on individuals of many different ages and criminal backgrounds has found that the

relationship among these three factors—age, prior arrests, and recidivism—seems constant (younger

individuals with a higher number of prior criminal events are more likely to recidivate than the converse)

(Levinson, 2002).

2. Notably, Uggen (1999) found that randomly assigned employment reduced self-reported recidivism

among older (age 26 years or older) but not younger former prisoners. Although the average age of the

National Supported Work sample was 25, which is approximately 8 years younger than former prisoners

in the current sample, these findings are consistent with those reported later in this article to the extent

that Uggen’s measure of age was a proxy for prior arrests (age and prior arrests are typically highly

correlated, with older offenders having had greater opportunity to accumulate more prior arrests).

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