Making it on the Outside: Towards an Integrated Control Theory for Understanding the Reintegration Process
| Author | RYAN LAFLEUR,BILL O'GRADY |
| Published date | 01 May 2016 |
| Date | 01 May 2016 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/hojo.12161 |
The Howard Journal Vol55 No 1–2. May 2016 DOI: 10.1111/hojo.12161
ISSN 2059-1098, pp. 42–56
Making it on the Outside: Towards an
Integrated Control Theory for
Understanding the Reintegration
Process
RYAN LAFLEUR and BILL O’GRADY
Ryan Lafleur is a PhD candidate and Bill O’Grady is Professor of Sociology,
Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Guelph,
Ontario, Canada
Abstract: Reintegration has garnered greater attention in criminology, as many releasees
from prisons are being recycled back into criminal justice systems around the world.
Despite this trend, the reintegration literature to date has been mainly descriptive and few
studies have paid attention to the theoretical dynamics and social context surrounding
reintegration. To address this gap, we suggest that the prominent debate, mainly found
in American criminology, on crime causation between Gottfredson and Hirschi’s (1990)
General Theory of Crime (GTC) and Sampson and Laub’s (1993) and Laub and
Sampson’s (2003) Age-Graded Theory of Informal Social Control (AGTISC) be used
to advance this largely atheoretical literature. After showing that research exploring
the effects of self-control and informal social control on reintegration remains largely
uncharted territory in criminological theory, we propose an integrated control theory, in
addition to some methodological considerations, for better understanding reintegration.
Keywords: reintegration; self-control; informal social control; integrated
control theory; desistance
Whether known as prisoner resettlement in the United Kingdom (UK),
inmate reintegration in other Commonwealth countries (such as Australia,
Canada, and New Zealand), or prisoner re-entry in the United States (US),
there is a growing concern among criminologists, practitioners, and policy
makers about the number of prison releasees being readmitted to cus-
tody.Although time periods for measuring reoffending vary,recent recidi-
vism rates in these jurisdictions range from 25.1% in England and Wales,
[Correction added on March 22, 2016, after first online publication: title is corrected
from “Understanding the Reintegration Process” to “Making it on the Outside: Towards
an Integrated Control Theory for Understanding the Reintegration Process”]
42
C
2016 The Howard League and John Wiley & Sons Ltd
Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK
To continue reading
Request your trial