title: The Impact of Vocational Education and Training Programs on Recidivism: A Systematic Review of Current Experimental Evidence.
abstract: Although the association between unemployment and offending is well established, relatively little is known about the impact of vocational education and training programs on re-offending, with much of the previous work in this area failing to control for, or correct, selection bias. This article reports the findings of a systematic review, which considers the findings of only those studies that have used experimental or quasi-experimental designs to evaluate vocational training and employment program outcomes for adult offenders. The analysis identifies key features, based on these studies, of those programs associated with the best outcomes and recommends selection criteria for those who are most likely to benefit from prison vocational education and training.
authors.affiliation: 1 Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Danielle
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Newton
authors.affiliation: 1 Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Day
authors.affiliation: 2 Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Margaret
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Giles
authors.affiliation: 3 University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Joanne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wodak
authors.affiliation: 1 Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Joe
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Graffam
authors.affiliation: 1 Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.|3 University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Eileen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Baldry
mesh_terms: D004651:Employment; D006801:Humans; D011329:Prisoners; D000075665:Recidivism / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014829:Vocational Education
keywords: employment; prisoners; recidivism; vocational training