DEVELOPMENT OF A MODEL FOR PREDICTION OF INMATE INTEREST IN PRISON-SPONSORED ACADEMIC AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION

• NCJ Number: 45391
• Author(s): M G SHINBAUM
• Date Published: 1977
• Length: 92 pages
• Sale Source: UMI Dissertation Services
• Publication Type: Thesis/Dissertation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: AUBURN UNIVERSITY - DOCTORAL DISSERTATION

Annotation

THE PURPOSE OF THE STUDY IS TO DEVELOP A MEANS FOR IDENTIFYING SPECIFIC CHARACTERISTICS OF THOSE PRISONERS WHO WANT AND CAN PROFIT FROM BASIC EDUCATION AND VOCATIONAL TRAINING.

Abstract

DATA FROM PRISON CENTRAL RECORDS, EDUCATIONAL ENROLLMENT RECORDS, AND STRUCTURED PERSONAL INTERVIEWS WERE EXAMINED FOR 70 FEMALE AND 79 MALE INMATES AT THREE ALABAMA PRISONS. IT WAS HYPOTHESIZED THAT THERE WOULD BE NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN REQUEST FOR PARTICIPATION OR ENROLLMENT IN EDUCATION AND TRAINING PROGRAMS AMONG INMATES AS A FUNCTION OF ONE OR MORE VARIABLES SELECTED FROM AGE, RACE, SEX, READING LEVEL, IQ SCORE, TIME IN PRISON, TYPE OF CRIME, OR CRIMINAL HISTORY, RESPECTIVELY, INCLUDED IN STEP-WISE MULTIPLE REGRESSION PREDICTION MODELS. SUCH A MODEL INCLUDING AGE, TYPE OF CRIME, TIME IN PRISON, CRIMINAL HISTORY, RACE, IQ SCORE, AND READING LEVEL WAS IDENTIFIED BY COMPUTER AS SIGNIFICANT FOR PREDICTION OF REQUEST. A MODEL INCLUDING AGE, TYPE OF CRIME, CRIMINAL HISTORY, TIME IN PRISON, READING LEVEL, IQ SCORE, AND SEX WAS IDENTIFIED AS SIGNIFICANT FOR PREDICTION OF ENROLLMENT. AGE, THE MOST IMPORTMANT PREDICTOR, WAS NEGATIVELY RELATED TO BOTH REQUEST AND ENROLLMENT. THE TIME-BASED VARIABLES, ALL NEGATIVELY RELATED TO ENROLLMENT, FURNISHED THE MAJOR PORTION OF EXPLANATION OF VARIANCE. FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT WHEN OTHER VARIABLES ARE CONTROLLED, OLDER, RECIDIVIST INMATES, INCARCERATED FOR LONGER PERIODS OF TIME, ARE LESS INTERESTED IN REHABILITATIVE EDUCATION THAN YOUNGER, FIRST OR SECOND OFFENDERS WHO ARE RELATIVELY NEW TO THE PRISON ENVIRONMENT. INMATES WITH LOW READING LEVELS AND AVERAGE TO ABOVE AVERAGE IQ SCORES WERE LESS LIKELY TO ENROLL THAN THOSE WITH BOTH LOW READING LEVELS AND LOW IQ SCORES. THE FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT SPECIAL MEASURES ARE NEEDED TO ATTRACT POOR READERS WHO ARE MOST IN NEED OF REHABILITATIVE PROGRAMS BUT LEAST LIKELY TO REQUEST OR ENROLL IN THEM. THEY ALSO SUGGEST THAT INMATES SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO ENROLL IN EDUCATION AND TRAINING PROGRAMS EARLY IN THE SENTENCE SPAN WHEN POTENTIAL FOR INTEREST IS HIGHEST. SUPPORTING DATA AND REFERENCES ARE PROVIDED, AND THE INTERVIEW FORM IS APPENDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--VDA)