The Process of Reintegration: From Prison To Conditional Release

Abstract Despite extensive research on desistance, there remains limited understanding of how imprisoned individuals achieve successful reintegration. This study aims to advance insight on this topic by contributing to the special issue on Longitudinal and Developmental of Criminal Justice Interventions and Reintegration . For this purpose, we selected a heterogeneous sample of individuals who, after imprisonment, were serving their sentences on open regime or conditional release with a positive evolution in two locations in Spain (Barcelona and Madrid). The qualitative analysis of the 60 interviews shows that reintegration started in prison when individuals developed important cognitive transformations —such as assuming responsibility for their offences and developing a prosocial identity— and continued while in open regime or conditional release. In this latter phase, the combination of support and control enabled the reestablishment of social bonds, which in turn prevented reoffending. Consequently, this work suggests an integrative theoretical framework to understand the continuity of the reintegration process from prison to conditional release. In this sequence, rational choice and cognitive transformation theories are more relevant during imprisonment, and informal social control in the life course is more explanatory during transitional release.