Exploring Practitioner Perspectives on the Exit and Reintegration of Federally Incarcerated Extremists

Recently, practitioners have expressed concern about the increasing number of clients on supervision with current or past involvement in violent extremism. There is limited evidence on the specific needs of violent extremists during reintegration and the factors associated with terrorist recidivism and re-engagement. Consequently, we know little about how applicable the policies and practices designed to reduce recidivism and facilitate reintegration are for formerly incarcerated extremists on supervised release. Our study assesses a broad range of practitioners to explore emergent policy issues related to management, interventions, resources, and training. We conducted qualitative interviews with 56 practitioners to understand how they approach cases involving violent extremism and the challenges they face. We employed thematic analysis and present our emergent themes in three thematic categories: overlapping vulnerabilities and criminogenic needs, challenges with extremist clients, and training needs. We conclude by discussing the implications of our findings for policy and practice.