Sheldon X. Zhang

Preventing Parolees From Returning to Prison Through Community-Based Reintegration:

In the late 1990s, California legislators funded a statewide, community-based correctional program intended to reduce parolee recidivism. Overseen by the California Department of Corrections, the PreventingParolee Crime Program (PPCP) provided literacy training, employment services, housing assistance, and substance abuse treatment to tens of thousands of parolees. The study found that the PPCP produced modest reductions in reincarcerations and parole absconding, creating the potential for substantial long-term cost savings for California taxpayers. Because the PPCPs positive effects were strongest for parolees who completed their services, future program designers and administrators should consider including mechanisms to improve parolee retention and service utilization. This study also points out the potential benefits of incorporating rigorous evaluation plans into the design and implementation of correctional rehabilitation programs.

Beyond the ‘Natasha’ story – a review and critique of current research on sex trafficking

A review of literature on sex trafficking since 2000 reveals that numerous articles have been published in scholarly journals but few are based on systematic primary data collection. Much of our current knowledge, including statistical estimates and characteristics of the trafficking business, derives from a handful reports issued by government and non-government agencies. With few empirical studies available, imagination seems to have filled the gaps of our knowledge. The problem was further complicated by a manifest (sometimes subtle) moral crusading agenda aimed at a deep-rooted and hotly debated social practice. Also noticeable in the literature is an increasing number of authors who have begun to challenge the empirical premises claimed by these published reports. These sceptical authors find that many articles of questionable quality have been published in peer-reviewed journals, and claim that the current discourse on human trafficking is driven by mythology rather than empirical research. Rather than dwelling on gaps in our knowledge or concerns over the moral overtone in academic research, this paper seeks to raise specific research questions and explore possible field strategies that can advance our knowledge on this topic. Regardless of ones moral compass, the future of research on sex trafficking cannot become credible without a solid empirical foundation.

Reintegrative Shaming and Predatory Delinquency

This study represents an attempt to test Braithwaite’s theory of reintegrative shaming with an operationalization scheme of two variables—disapproval of delinquent behavior (shaming) and forgiveness of the transgressor (reintegration) by parents and peers. The study combines measures of delinquency disapproval and forgiveness of the transgressor by parents and peers to capture the concept of reintegrative shaming. Using data collected from the first two waves of the National Youth Survey, the study finds no effect of either parental reintegrative shaming or peer reintegrative shaming on predatory delinquency in either wave when the effects of other important variables are held constant. However, the data reveal that parental forgiveness and peer shaming alone have significant and negative effects on the likelihood of being involved in predatory offenses in both waves. In contrast, peer forgiveness shows a significant and positive effect on predatory offense involvement in the first wave. The findings provide support to some elements of Braithwaite’s theory but not to the key hypothesis, assuming that reintegrative shaming is a significant predictor of predatory offenses. Implications of the findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.

A test-retest reliability assessment of the international self-report delinquency instrument

Abstract This article reports the findings from a self-administered test-retest study of the International Self-Report Delinquency (ISRD) instrument, which was developed by criminologists from fifteen Western countries a decade ago and has been widely used since. Despite its popularity, a recent Dutch study challenged its over-time reliability. This study found that the instrument, when self-administered among college students in Boston and San Diego ( N = 147), produced consistent results. The consistency between Time One and Time Two in response to the prevalence question (i.e., “Have you ever … ?”) in all recorded offenses ranged from a high of 100 percent to a low of 85 percent. The observed variations (i.e., a yes answer at Time One and no at Time Two, or vice-versa) in most cases were found to be insignificant. Alcohol and drug questions had the highest reliability over time. Limitations and implications of the findings and suggestions for future research were discussed.

Therapeutic Community in a California Prison: Treatment Outcomes After 5 Years

Therapeutic communities have become increasingly popular among correctional agencies with drug-involved offenders. This quasi-experimental study followed a group of inmates who participated in a prison-based therapeutic community in a California state prison, with a comparison group of matched offenders, for more than 5 years after their initial prison release. Contrary to successes reported elsewhere, this study found no difference in new arrests and returns to prison between therapeutic community participants and the comparison participants after 5 years. Overall, more than 60% of both groups were returned to prison within 2 years following their initial release. After 5 years, the return-to-prison rate reached about 73% for both groups. The average time spent in prison following initial release was about the same for both groups. Rearrest offenses were also similar in both groups. Policy implications are discussed.

Bound for the Golden Mountain: The social organization of Chinese alien smuggling

This paper describes and analyzes the structural and operational features of Chinese alien smuggling. Interviews with aliens, smugglers and law enforcement officials in China, Hong Kong and the U.S. reveal this activity to be a complex process comprising a number of distinct operational stages. Our data suggest Chinese alien smuggling groups vary in their level of organization but most are best understood as task forces, or small groups of people assembled to perform a particular piece of work. These task forces are typically linked to international social networks characterized by overlapping, dyadic relationships; a high level of role differentiation; and a limited degree of hierarchy. Such groups are highly responsive to changing socio-legal and market constraints.

Correlates of Depressive Symptoms among Homeless Men on Parole

This study describes correlates of high levels of depressive symptoms among recently paroled men in Los Angeles who reside in a community substance abuse treatment program and report homelessness. Cross-sectional data were obtained from male residents who were released on parole within the last 30 days (N =157) to assess parental relationship, self-esteem, social support, coping behaviors, drug and alcohol use behaviors, depressive symptoms, and sociodemographic information. Results indicated that 40% of the participants were classified as experiencing high levels of depressive symptoms (CES-D ≥ 10). Results of a logistic regression analysis showed that the following were predictors of depressive symptoms (p <.05): physical abuse in childhood, non-residential alcohol treatment, violent behaviors, low self-esteem, and disengagement coping. Being Mexican-American, Mexican, American Indian, or Asian, and not displaying cognitive problems was inversely related to depressive symptoms in the final model (B =–2.39, p <.05). Findings support proper use of both prison and community assessment services to at-risk individuals eligible for parole to increase self-esteem and coping.

Nursing case management, peer coaching, and hepatitis a and B vaccine completion among homeless men recently released on parole: randomized clinical trial.

BackgroundAlthough hepatitis A virus (HAV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections are vaccine-preventable diseases, few homeless parolees coming out of prisons and jails have received the hepatitis A and B vaccination series. ObjectivesThe study focused on completion of the HAV and HBV vaccine series among homeless men on parole. The efficacy of three levels of peer coaching (PC) and nurse-delivered interventions was compared at 12-month follow-up: (a) intensive peer coaching and nurse case management (PC-NCM); (b) intensive PC intervention condition, with minimal nurse involvement; and (c) usual care (UC) intervention condition, which included minimal PC and nurse involvement. Furthermore, we assessed predictors of vaccine completion among this targeted sample. MethodsA randomized control trial was conducted with 600 recently paroled men to assess the impact of the three intervention conditions (PC-NCM vs. PC vs. UC) on reducing drug use and recidivism; of these, 345 seronegative, vaccine-eligible subjects were included in this analysis of completion of the Twinrix HAV/HBV vaccine. Logistic regression was added to assess predictors of completion of the HAV/HBV vaccine series and chi-square analysis to compare completion rates across the three levels of intervention. ResultsVaccine completion rate for the intervention conditions were 75.4% (PC-NCM), 71.8% (PC), and 71.9% (UC; p = .78). Predictors of vaccine noncompletion included being Asian and Pacific Islander, experiencing high levels of hostility, positive social support, reporting a history of injection drug use, being released early from California prisons, and being admitted for psychiatric illness. Predictors of vaccine series completion included reporting having six or more friends, recent cocaine use, and staying in drug treatment for at least 90 days. DiscussionFindings allow greater understanding of factors affecting vaccination completion in order to design more effective programs among the high-risk population of men recently released from prison and on parole.

An Analysis of Prisoner Reentry and Parole Risk Using COMPAS and Traditional Criminal History Measures

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has adopted Correctional Offender Management and Profiling Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS), an actuarial risk- and needs-assessment instrument, as part of its reentry supervision and parole planning procedure. A large-scale 3-year prospective study was conducted to assess the instrument with regard to how well it predicted whether a parolee would be rearrested for (a) any crime and (b) a violent offense. This study followed, for up to 2 years, a total of 91,334 parolees who had been assessed with COMPAS prior to reentry into the community. The instrument achieved an acceptable level of predictive validity in general rearrests with an area under the curve value of 0.70, but its predictive power for subsequent violent offenses fell short of this conventional threshold. Moreover, a parsimonious model using four known risk factors from existing official records (i.e., gender, age, age of first arrest, and the number of prior arrests) performed just as well in predicting subsequent arrests. Findings from this study illustrate the challenges in applying group-based attributes to predict individual criminal behavior and suggest that, although COMPAS has other attractive features such as case management capability, existing official records may offer a lower cost alternative for assessing the risk of reoffending for community reentry purposes.

Estimating Labor Trafficking among Unauthorized Migrant Workers in San Diego

Research on labor trafficking faces many methodological challenges, which make it difficult to provide reliable estimates of the problem. In this research, we applied respondent-driven sampling and unique access to migrant communities in San Diego County, California, to estimate the extent of trafficking violations in one of America’s largest Spanish-speaking immigrant destinations. We found that 30 percent of undocumented migrant laborers were victims of labor trafficking, 55 percent were victims of other labor abuses, and about half of these victimization experiences occurred within the past 12 months. The rate of trafficking violations varied markedly across business sectors that typically hire unauthorized migrant workers. Construction and janitorial services had the most reported trafficking violations and labor abuses. Findings in this study also suggest that the illegal status in the country is likely the most significant factor contributing to vulnerability to trafficking violations.