NIJ’s Corrections Research Portfolio develops knowledge and science-based research to enhance the correctional workforce, improve safety and security in institutions, and promote public safety through successful reintegration of formerly incarcerated people. This is accomplished by examining strategies to enhance correctional operations, recruit and retain the correctional workforce, encourage safe and secure incarceration, and improve reentry services for individuals returning to their communities.
NIJ’s Corrections Research Portfolio examines the role and potential of correctional agencies to contribute to the enhancement of public safety and rehabilitation through effective custodial and monitoring practices and the delivery of services and treatment. The portfolio applies to all correctional agencies, including jails, prisons, and community corrections. This may include probation, parole, and other corrections programs involving individuals under criminal justice supervision in the community. These settings differ in important ways, such as structure and organization; staff working conditions, training, and other developmental support; organizational goals and strategies; availability and delivery of programming and treatment; and differences in the populations under supervision. The corrections portfolio encompasses the entire correctional mission to produce relevant research to address each component’s unique needs.
The technology and sophistication of corrections strategies continue to advance. Currently, many correctional organizational systems rely on both institutional and community corrections to confine and supervise individuals when needed and to support their reintegration into the community. The essential components of any corrections system include the interventions undertaken, the workforce interacting with those under corrections supervision, the organization, and the individuals under supervision. Each component requires dedicated inquiry. Current projects use a range of methods to address relevant research questions, including randomized control trials, quasi-experimental designs, and mixed method analyses.
Corrections plays a vital role in an effective criminal justice system and, by extension, in ensuring public safety. Resources — both funding and personnel — are scarce and often insufficient to meet operational demands. Correctional practitioners and policymakers need sound evidence to help them allocate scarce resources effectively, implement successful strategies, and ensure the well-being of correctional staff and the communities they serve. Effective correctional operations and programming benefit those directly affected by the correctional system and the broader community . The beneficiaries of this work include community members, practitioners, policymakers, and researchers.
Research Priority 1: Support research and evaluation to improve correctional systems’ operations.
| Number | Question |
|---|---|
| Research Question 1.1 | What programs and policies effectively enhance safety and security in correctional institutions? |
| Research Question 1.2 | What technological innovations promote safety, security, and positive outcomes for correctional agency employees and persons who are incarcerated and on community supervision? |
| Research Question 1.3 | How can correctional agencies effectively identify and interdict contraband in facilities? |
Research Priority 2: Identify and evaluate strategies that promote correctional workforce development.
| Number | Question |
|---|---|
| Research Question 2.1 | What practices effectively support correctional officer recruitment and retention? |
| Research Question 2.2 | What programs and policies enhance safety, health, and wellness for correctional officers? |
| Research Question 2.3 | How do the cultures and climates of correctional agencies affect the workforce? |
Priority 3: Advance the understanding of effective reentry programming.
| Number | Question |
|---|---|
| Research Question 3.1 | What programs and policies support reentry by reducing recidivism? |
| Research Question 3.2 | What initiatives effectively promote public safety by reducing the likelihood of violent crime by those returning to the community from prison or jail? |
| Research Question 3.3 | How can interventions reduce the likelihood of substance use among those returning to the community from prison or jail? |
Reports -
- AI R&D to Support Community Supervision: Integrated Dynamic Risk Assessment for Community Supervision (IDRACS), Final Report
- Reentry Research at NIJ: Providing Robust Evidence for High-Stakes Decision-Making
- he Accumulated Impact of Direct and Indirect Workplace Violence Exposure on Mental Health and Physiological Activity Among Correctional Officers
Datasets -
- Law Enforcement Officers Safety and Wellness: A Multi-Level Study, United States, 2020-2022
- A Follow-Up Evaluation of Hawaii's Opportunity Probation with Enforcement (HOPE), 2007-2014
- The Impact of Correction Officer Suicide on the Institutional Environment and on the Wellbeing of Correctional Employees
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