Major Study Examines Prisoners and Their Reentry Needs
by Christy A. Visher, Ph.D., and Pamela K. Lattimore, Ph.D.
About the Authors

Dr. Visher is a principal research associate at the Urban Institute’s
Justice Policy Center. Dr. Lattimore is a principal scientist at RTI
International’s Center for Crime, Violence, and Justice Research.

K

ey demographics were recently
released from a study of reentry
programs under the Serious and
Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI)—
a Federal effort to help States use their
correctional resources to reduce recidivism.1
Aimed at increasing public safety, SVORI is
an unprecedented national response to the
criminal justice, employment, education,
health, and housing challenges that adult
and juvenile offenders face when they
return to the community.
RTI International, a nonprofit research
group, and the Urban Institute, a nonpartisan
economic and social policy research
organization, are conducting a 5-year

evaluation of the effectiveness of the
SVORI programs. In the National Institute
of Justice–funded evaluation, researchers
interviewed prisoners at 16 sites, asking
them shortly before they were released
what services they felt they would need.
Here is a summary of the demographics and
responses of the SVORI group (a sample of
935 men who received SVORI services) and
the comparison group (923 men who did not
receive SVORI services).2

Who Are the SVORI Men?
More than half of the men in the SVORI
group are African American, and nearly onethird are Caucasian.3 The majority of the
SVORI group are neither married nor in a
steady relationship. The average age of the
men is 29. Sixty percent are fathers of minor
children, and nearly half of them reported
having primary care responsibilities. Less

svori Group demographic
highlights
• Average age 29 years
• 56% African American
• 32% Caucasian
• 4% Hispanic
• 83% served prior prison terms
• 52% had been incarcerated in juvenile
correctional facility
• 62% completed high school or GED
• 60% with children under age 18
• Of those with minor children, 49% have
primary care responsibilities of children
• 37% in a steady intimate relationship
• 8% married

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NIJ Journal / Issue No. 258

than two-thirds have completed 12th grade
or earned a high school equivalency degree.
Nine out of 10 men in the SVORI group
reported having a job at some point in their
lifetime, and nearly two-thirds said they were
employed during the 6 months before their
incarceration. They typically held blue-collar
jobs, serving as laborers, service workers,
equipment operators, and skilled craftspeople.
Nearly half reported that they had supported
themselves in part through illegal activities,
and more than two-thirds reported perpetrating violence during the 6 months before
they were incarcerated. Eighty-three percent
served prior prison terms. The majority of
the group reported having family members
and friends who had been convicted of
a crime or had problems with drugs and
alcohol.

The SVORI Men Define Their Needs
Part of the evaluation of the SVORI
programs is based on prisoners’ responses
to questions about the services they need
after they are released from prison. The
most commonly reported reentry needs

were more education, general financial
assistance, a driver’s license, job training,
and employment.
Nearly three-quarters of the SVORI group
reported needing transportation assistance
and better money-management skills.
More than half said they needed some
of the most basic and immediate needs—
food, clothing, and a place to live—along
with basic identification (birth certificate,
Social Security card, and photo ID card)
and financial assistance. Those who had
minor children also reported a need for
parenting classes and child care, help with
child support payments, and help resolving
custody issues.
When asked what health services they
needed upon release, three-quarters
identified health care insurance and more
than half identified medical treatment. It
is important to keep in mind that many
reported needs are intertwined. For
example, when a former prisoner applies
for medical insurance or treatment, he is
also likely to need identification and possibly
transportation.

What education and employment experience
do they have?

What experience have they had with violence?

Ever held a job

89%

Perpetrated violence during 6 months pre-prison

69%

Held a job during 6 months pre-prison

64%

Victim of violence during 6 months pre-prison

59%

High school graduate or GED

62%

Victim of violence during incarceration

56%

Expect to return to a previous job

56%

Never held a job for more than 1 year

42%

What experience have their friends and family
had with criminal behavior?

How did they support themselves pre-prison?

Friends have been convicted of a crime
or incarcerated

84%

Partly through illegal activities

45%

Friends have drug or alcohol problems

82%

Mostly through illegal activities

39%

78%

Help from family

32%

Family members have been convicted
of a crime or incarcerated

Help from friends

18%

Family members have problems with
drugs or alcohol

72%

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NIJ Journal / Issue No. 258

What family services do those with minor
children need?
Parenting classes

61%

Help with child support payments

45%

Child care

40%

Help resolving child custody issues

36%

What other services do they need?
Transportation assistance

73%

Money-management skills

71%

Access to food or clothing banks

62%

Most Requested Reentry Needs

Identification (e.g., birth certificate)

56%

• 94% More education
• 86% General financial assistance
• 83% Driver’s license
• 82% Job training
• 80% Employment

Financial assistance from government

53%

A place to live

52%

Legal assistance

46%

What attitude and behavior help do they need?
What health services do they need?

65%

Health care insurance

76%

Improve personal relationships

64%

Medical treatment

57%

Mentoring

60%

Alcohol or substance abuse treatment

38%

Spiritual or religious assistance

52%

Mental health treatment

23%

Anger management

36%

The majority of the SVORI group seemed
to recognize some aspect of their own
behavior that they need to change to
improve their lives after they are released.
Almost two-thirds reported needing to
work on their personal relationships, and
more than half said they needed a mentor
and spiritual or religious assistance. Onethird reported needing anger management
training.
Over the next 2 years, additional findings
will be released. These will be based on
interviews with the SVORI group and the
comparison group at 3 months, 9 months,
and 15 months postrelease. The interviews
will include drug testing at the 3- and 15month marks, which will offer critical data
not only on postrelease drug use, but
also on the consistency of self-reported
information. Additional analyses will
32

Change attitude about criminal behavior

examine recidivism and other outcomes at
12 and 24 months postrelease. For more
information on SVORI programs and the
evaluation, see www.svori-evaluation.org.
NCJ 219609

Notes
1. 	 SVORI is funded by the U.S. Departments
of Justice, Labor, Education, Housing and
Urban Development, and Health and Human
Services.
2. 	 The evaluation also includes interviews with
adult female prisoners and juvenile males.
This article, however, discusses only the
adult males in this study.
3. 	 Although this article presents statistics
for the SVORI group only, responses from
the comparison group were similar in terms
of demographics and types of services
needed.

NIJ Journal / Issue No. 258

What Do the SVORI Programs Offer?
SVORI funding supports a three-phase service continuum that focuses on
reentry preparation: (1) just prior to release from prison, (2) during the first
few months postrelease, and (3) for several years postrelease as participants
take on more productive and independent roles in the community. There are
89 adult and juvenile SVORI programs, which offer such services as life-skills
training, dental and medical services, needs and risk assessments, treatment
and release plans, and job placement.
The following charts, based on a survey of SVORI program directors in 2005,
show the percentage of adult SVORI participants that received particular types
of services in prison (prerelease) and after they were released.

Adult SVORI Participants Receiving Prerelease Services
Life-skills training

78%

Dental services

82%

Medical services

86%

Needs assessment

94%

Risk assessment

94%

Treatment/release plan

95%

Adult SVORI Participants Receiving Postrelease Services
Résumé and interviewing skills
Job referrals/placement
Risk assessment
Needs assessment
Supervision
Treatment/release plan

65%
71%
82%
84%
90%
92%

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