“Please Explain”: Evaluating the Impact of Criminal-Record Justifications on Employers’ Hiring Decisions

Objectives This study identifies how explanations about a criminal record affect hiring managers’ willingness to call back (WCB) a job applicant. Methods We surveyed 328 hiring managers, who were asked to evaluate eight explanations job applicants can provide about their criminal record grounded in existing guidance and criminological theory. Through an innovative application of hierarchical modeling, we leveraged within-employer variability to identify the effect of each explanation on WCB, moderated by offense type. We also used open-ended follow-up questions to help contextualize findings. Results The most effective explanation was a request to explain the record in an interview, followed by emphasizing a long time since conviction, then by signaling desistance, responsibility, and rehabilitation. The least effective were to claim a wrongful conviction, and particularly to provide no explanation whatsoever. Effects were virtually the same across offense types. Conclusions Explanations can greatly enhance, or undermine, the job prospects of individuals with criminal records. There is a high cost for silence or for denying responsibility, whereas emphasizing change, desistance, rehabilitation, and mostly openness to further discuss the record is rewarded. Findings align with attribution theory and support guidance for job applicants with criminal records.