Restorative Prison: Essays on Inmate Peer Ministry and Prosocial Corrections

This book offers a transformative agenda for incentivizing and rewarding good behavior inside prisons, offering hope for a positive future. It explores how inmates can come to consider their existence as meaningful despite their criminal past and current incarceration, facilitated by religious practice. The authors' expertise on the impact of faith-based programs on recidivism reduction makes it an essential reading for scholars and professionals involved in correctional counseling and prison ministry.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 140 pages
Publication date: 06 September 2021
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Drawing on extensive research from within some of America's most formidable and challenging prisons, this groundbreaking book presents an alternative model of restorative justice that harnesses the profound insights and lived experiences of successful inmates. This innovative approach swiftly challenges traditional models of correctional programming, offering a transformative vision for incentivizing and rewarding positive behavior within correctional institutions.

While studies have consistently demonstrated a strong yearning among individuals serving time in prison to redeem themselves, inmates often face significant barriers to achieving this goal. In a system that has become excessively punitive and dysfunctional, a mere fraction of prisoners, often less than 10%, receive any form of programming. Upon their release, incarcerated citizens in the United States exhibit remarkably high recidivism rates, with a majority returning to prison within a mere five years.

In this seminal work, the authors unveil a transformative agenda aimed at fostering positive behavior and rewarding good conduct within prisons. This innovative approach has proven to be a disruptive alternative to mainstream corrections, offering a glimmer of hope for a brighter future. Through their deep understanding of the impact of faith-based programs on recidivism reduction and prisoner reentry, the authors delve into the principles underlying inmate-led religious services and other prosocial programs. They demonstrate how these programs can empower incarcerated individuals to find meaning and purpose in their lives, even in the face of their criminal past and current incarceration.

Religious practice is revealed as a powerful catalyst for facilitating the kind of transformative identity work that leads to desistance. This process involves a profound shift in worldview and self-concept, enabling prisoners to perceive and interpret reality in entirely new ways. The constitutional protection of religious participation in prisons ensures that these model programs can thrive, helping prison administrators navigate financial challenges while also reducing the punitive nature of correctional institutions.

By embracing the power of the lived experience and leveraging the principles of restorative justice, this book offers a roadmap for creating more humane and effective correctional systems. It serves as a powerful testament to the potential for positive change within the criminal justice system and provides a valuable resource for policymakers, practitioners, and individuals seeking to build a more just and equitable society.

Weight: 320g
Dimension: 178 x 254 x 15 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780367766375