Unnesting the Matryoshka Doll: An Ecological Model of Probation and Parole Decision-Making in Ireland

• Author: Deirdre Healy,Diarmuid Griffin
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/10439862221138678
• Published date: 01 February 2023
• Date: 01 February 2023
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/10439862221138678

Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice

2023, Vol. 39(1) 75 –93

© The Author(s) 2022

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DOI: 10.1177/10439862221138678

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Article

Unnesting the Matryoshka

Doll: An Ecological Model

of Probation and Parole

Decision-Making in Ireland

Deirdre Healy1 and Diarmuid Griffin2

Abstract

Understanding penal decision-making has become a central concern of criminologists

over recent decades. Although scholars acknowledge the complex, multi-faceted,

and contextual nature of penal decision-making, many rely on a single level of analysis

to study the process. There is a rich literature on the socio-political, organizational,

and individual context of decision-making, but few studies consider the impact of

multiple influences simultaneously. To address this gap, this article uses a multi-level

framework to shed light on the systems, processes, and actors that shape penal

decision-making in Ireland. It draws on two case studies, namely probation and

parole, to demonstrate that macro-, meso-, micro-, and individual-level influences

must be considered to achieve a comprehensive understanding. Our analysis shows

that macro-level systems such as legal and political processes play an important role

in shaping probation and parole decisions. At the meso-level, institutional policies,

values, and culture come into play while practitioner agency operates at the micro-

level to support, alter, or subvert macro- and meso-level developments. Finally, the

characteristics and behavior of victims and offenders can shape decision-making at

the individual level. The article concludes with a reflection on the implications of this

analysis for criminological knowledge.

Keywords

parole, probation, ecological model, Ireland

1University College Dublin, Ireland

2University of Galway, Ireland

Corresponding Author:

Deirdre Healy, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin D04 V1W8, Ireland.

Email: Deirdre.healy@ucd.ie

1138678CCJXXX10.1177/10439862221138678Journal of Contemporary Criminal JusticeHealy and Grin

research-article2022

76 Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice 39(1)

Introduction

The search for a comprehensive framework to chart and explain the processes, driv-

ers, and outcomes of penal policy has captured the criminological imagination in

recent decades, generating a wealth of research on penal rhetoric, policy, and prac-

tice. While space constraints preclude a full review of this literature, it is important

to highlight some key theoretical strands to contextualize our discussion of penal

trends in the Irish context. Rubin and Phelps (2017) document a theoretical shift

away from so-called grand narratives to approaches that emphasize differences and

complexities in penal trajectories both within and between countries. Most notably,

there is a burgeoning literature on penal exceptionalism which explores how some

countries, including Ireland, have eluded global penological trends. This literature

has made important contributions to our understanding of penal change, highlight-

ing the existence of counter-narratives and divergent trajectories, providing a deeper

understanding of the forces underpinning policy change and promoting a reform

agenda. However, Brangan (2020) queries the explanatory value of penal exception-

alism as a concept, given the proliferation of examples in the literature, and con-

cludes that efforts to benchmark countries against a hegemonic ideal may lead

researchers to overlook the significance of context-specific factors. Supporting this,

Tonry (2007, p. 38) concludes that “the determinants of changes in penal policies are

complex and contingent” and favors methodologies that produce nuanced analyses

of a wide range of potential explanatory variables, particularly local determinants

which are often more salient than global factors. In addition, Rubin and Phelps

(2017) reject the standard depiction of the penal state as a coherent and unified

entity, arguing that in reality the penal state is comprised of a diverse array of actors

operating at multiple system levels, each with their own agendas, values, roles, con-

texts, and cultures. Because of this, policy change is rarely linear and is better con-

ceptualized as a complex and multi-faceted process shaped by diverse forces (see

also Goodman et al., 2015). The fragmentary and contested nature of this process

often results in gaps between official and frontline rhetoric and practice (McNeill

et al., 2009, p. 421). According to Newburn et al. (2018), policy ideas are fragile and

highly mobile and, as they circulate through systems and states, both change and are

changed by the terrain through which they travel. In practical terms, this requires

attention not just to visible artifacts such as the introduction of a new policy but also

to informal aspects such as the values, beliefs, cultures, and practices that influence

practitioners’ receptiveness to new approaches (Rubin, 2019). Research also high-

lights the importance of studying multiple levels of analysis. Within the probation

field, Dominey (2019) argues that effective practice is achieved through profession-

als in different parts of the system working collaboratively—and with the commu-

nity—to support people under supervision. Taken together, this literature shows that

a comprehensive account of penal decision-making requires a foregrounding of the

local context, analysis of multiple system levels, attention to the role of actors (both

leaders and frontline practitioners), and deconstruction of the penal field into its

constituent elements.