Imagine if a person was a major drug dealer and drug money was their only stream of income. Once that person is caught by law enforcement and sentenced by the court, they spend some time in the correctional system. When they get out, the reality of the label “felon” sticks with them when they’re trying to apply for jobs. If they are unable to make a living for themselves the right way, they will be tempted to go back to their criminal lifestyle. Society makes it extremely hard for felons to reenter society and the felons shouldn’t be at fault because they have limited options. They are going to fall back into their criminal lifestyle because many employers are not susceptible to hiring felons.
Granted, failure to re-enter society is a prevalent cause for felons to reoffend, but
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When society is not accepting the newly released prisoner, it makes them feel like they don’t belong, so they go back to their old ways,which involves reoffending. For instance, when a person has served a long-winded sentence,it could be hard to convert what society is now versus what it was before. In addition, programs are provided to reduce the rate of recidivism, but the effectiveness of the program is the bigger issue. Programs tend to be generalized and do not meet the needs of an inmate on an individual level. Also, the program could lack the essentials such as funding and proper staffing. Without those necessities, it could take away from the effectiveness of the program. Peer pressure and other provocations can also be a contributing factor to recidivism, especially for juveniles. For example, a juvenile might think that they earn the respect of their neighborhood and believe that going in and out of prison is “cool.” A previous example in the text explains economic stress. Economic stress could be summed up using Robert Merton’s Strain Theory. It’s all about finding your place in