What Gets Measured in Reentry Research? A Scoping Review on Community Reentry From Jail and Prison for Persons With Mental Illnesses

• Author: Liat Kriegel,Amy Blank Wilson,Kelli E. Canada,Stacey L. Barrenger
• DOI: 10.1177/0093854820983844
• Date: 01 March 2021
• Published date: 01 March 2021
• Subject Matter: Articles

CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND BEHAVIOR, 2021, Vol. 48, No. 3, March 2021, 259 –273.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854820983844

Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions

© 2020 International Association for Correctional and Forensic Psychology

259

WHAT GETS MEASURED IN REENTRY

RESEARCH? A SCOPING REVIEW ON

COMMUNITY REENTRY FROM JAIL AND

PRISON FOR PERSONS WITH MENTAL

ILLNESSES

STACEY L. BARRENGER

Northeast Ohio Medical University

LIAT KRIEGEL

Washington State University

KELLI E. CANADA

University of Missouri

AMY BLANK WILSON

University of North Carolina

Research on reentry for individuals with mental illnesses leaving jails and prisons lacks outcome specificity and standardiza-

tion needed to advance knowledge about the efficacy and effectiveness of interventions. This scoping review aims to provide

clarity about reentry outcomes by: (a) ascertaining what outcomes are a focus in reentry research, (b) explicating how out-

comes are defined, and (c) identifying commonalities or gaps in outcomes reported. A search of multiple databases yielded

415 articles for potential inclusion. After independent document review by two of the authors, 61 articles were included in

the review. Recidivism was the most used construct, accounting for 58% of total outcomes and 95% of criminal legal out-

comes. Behavioral health indicators were reported the second most frequently and other outcomes were rarely reported.

Increasing the specificity of commonly used concepts while also expanding the breadth of outcomes considered is needed to

build an evidence base this area of research.

Keywords: scoping review; prison reentry; jail reentry; recidivism; mental illnesses

Individuals with mental illnesses are overrepresented in jails and prison (Bronson &

Berzofsky, 2017). This phenomenon persists despite efforts to improve transitions to the

community for those that have been incarcerated. Early reentry interventions focused on

linkage to treatment which succeeded in that endeavor, but had little impact on recidivism

(Osher & Steadman, 2007; Skeem et al., 2011). As these first-generation interventions have

AUTHORS’ NOTE: Stacey L. Barrenger is now at the Psychiatry Department in the College of Medicine at

Northeast Ohio Medical University. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Stacey L.

Barrenger, Department of Psychiatry, Northeast Ohio Medical University, 4209 State Route 44, Rootstown, OH

44272; e-mail: sbarrenger@neomed.edu.

983844CJBXXX10.1177/0093854820983844Criminal Justice and BehaviorBarrenger et al. / Short Title

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