Date of Conferral

3-6-2024

Date of Award

March 2024

Degree

Doctor of Public Administration (D.P.A)

School

Public Policy and Administration

Advisor

Dr. Linda-Marie Sundstrom

Abstract

The problem that was addressed in this study was the high rate of recidivism among released offenders in the United States. Recidivism results in the rearrest of up to 650,000 offenders within 3 years of release. Reentry barriers are a primary cause of recidivism across the United States, as released offenders struggle to reintegrate into their communities. Policymakers and researchers have not focused on non-recidivating ex-convicts who designed, implemented, and maintained strategies for successful living. Rather than identifying obstacles ex-convicts face, which have been long recognized, the purpose of this phenomenological study was to investigate and identify post-incarceration strategies for reintegration that led to sustained success. The theoretical frameworks for this study were Weiner’s attributions for achievement, Bandura’s theory of self-efficacy, and Bourdieu's subset of habitus (theory of practice). Specifically, this study involved strategies used by released offenders to successfully navigate the following five policy-driven social barriers: (a) employment/income, (b) food, (c) stigmatized social relations, (d) finance/banking, and (e) housing. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews with 10 ex-offenders who had successfully reintegrated and had not been under supervision for at least 3 years. Thematic analysis revealed a total of seven themes and four subthemes. While the system continues to demonstrate many flaws that contribute to high rates of recidivism, research on successful ex-offenders offers positive social change through a new way of examining the recidivism problem.

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