Release, Recidivism, & Mortality in the Recidivism of Prisoners Released in 2005 Study

This BJS visiting fellowship will focus on using BJS prison release, prison admission, and mortality data to expand the understanding of imprisonment, recidivism and mortality. Dr. Wildeman, the BJS Fellow, will use his expertise in demography, mass imprisonment, and recidivism to answer the following questions: (1) What is the association between prison release and mortality for the average ex-prisoner rather than for ex-prisoners from states containing a small segment of the penal population?; (2) To what degree does imprisonment actually cause the lower than expected mortality rate of prisoners; and (3) To what degree does considering mortality and recidivism as competing risks alter estimates of recidivism?

Dr. Wildeman has proposed combining BJS recidivism data with external data sources (including data from the Social Security Administration and the National Death Index), to expand the analytical capabilities of these data. During his fellowship, he will assess the possibility and appropriateness of linking the recidivism data with other datasets. (CA/NCF)