Identity Required: How pro-social identity fosters desistance from crime

Hardly Working with Brent Orrell

Desistance, the decision to abandon criminal behavior,

is one of the great puzzles in criminal justice policy. Shawn D. Bushway of the

RAND Corporation argues that desistance depends on achieving a new,

noncriminal, pro-social identity, which is often a long and arduous process

supported by empirical evidence.

This rebroadcast of our December 14 event contains a discussion moderated by Brent on Dr. Bushway’s report “Reentry, desistance, and identity achievement.” The event features remarks from Dr. Bushway, followed by comments from Rashawn Ray of the Brookings Institution, Bret Bucklen of the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, and Julio Medina of Exodus Transitional Community.

Mentioned During the Show

Re-entry, Desistance and Identity Achievement

Shawn Bushway

Rashawn Ray

Bret Bucklen

Julio Medina

Ray Paternoster

Paternoster and Bushway 2009 Paper

Rhodes et al. study

Marcus Bullock-flikshop

Hawaii Hope program

David Farabee: Rethinking Rehabilitation

COMPASS: Correctional Offender Management

Exodus Transitional Community

Risk-Needs-Responsivity Model

Good Life Model