"I feel like I'm always on edge": Perceptions of parole supervision by parolees with substance use disorders.

Introduction: While extant research has looked at parole and its various actors as an institution, few studies recount the parole experience from the perspective of parolees. Additionally, despite the prevalence of substance use disorders (SUDs) within the criminal justice system, research that assesses the additional challenges this population faces throughout parole supervision is even scarcer.

Methods: To address this gap, we analyze in-depth qualitative interviews (n = 51) conducted with reentering men with SUDs as they navigate parole in Pennsylvania.

The prison-based Therapeutic Community: Resident recommendations for program improvement.

Introduction: The prison-based Therapeutic Community (TC) is widely used within correctional institutions to address substance use disorders (SUDs). While most evaluations of the prison-based TC find the program to be effective, recent mixed evidence and the continued surge of the opioid crisis call for deeper investigation into program operations, barriers to engagement, and sources of treatment effect heterogeneity. Notably lacking from prior evaluations, and critical to our understanding of variable program engagement, is first-hand experiences and perceptions from program participants.

Network Integration within a Prison-Based Therapeutic Community.

Prison-based therapeutic communities (TCs) are a widespread, effective way to help incarcerated individuals address substance abuse problems. The TC philosophy is grounded in an explicitly relational paradigm that entails building community and conditioning residents to increasingly take responsibility for leadership therein. Although TCs are based on cultivating a network that continuously integrates new residents, many common structural features can jeopardize TC goals and are hence discouraged (e.

Evaluating peer-influence processes in a prison-based therapeutic community: a dynamic network approach.

Background: The Therapeutic Community (TC) is a common treatment modality for incarcerated individuals with substance use disorders. TCs rely on peer group processes to promote lasting behavioral and identity change, yet prior research has not adequately tested the peer influence mechanisms underlying the theoretical model. This study applied dynamic network analysis to estimate peer influence processes central to TC philosophy.

Treatment engagement in a prison-based Therapeutic Community: A mixed-methods approach.

Given the high proportion of inmates with histories of substance use disorders in the era of mass incarceration, many correctional institutions have integrated the prison-based Therapeutic Community (TC) into their programming. While most evaluations provide evidence of lowered rates of relapse and recidivism, the majority of TC graduates still have negative outcomes post-release. Filling an important gap in the TC treatment literature, we analyze quantitative measures of treatment engagement alongside qualitative narratives from prison-based TC residents, providing an essential look into the black box of TC treatment mechanisms.