Psychofortological factors contributing to successful reintegration of offenders into society : an exploratory study

M.A.Four out of every 1000 South Africans are in correctional facilities and adult males make up the majority of the total prison population in South Africa (Department of Correctional Services, 2005). Most prisoners eventually return to society and returning to criminal behaviour can occur very quickly. Ex-offenders face many challenges when reintegrating into society. Yet despite these challenges and the high rates of recidivism, many former offenders have achieved a socially approved adjustment, overcome their problems and become contributing members of society. Unfortunately one seldom hears the stories of those who have successfully reintegrated into society and there seems to be a lack of research in this area. Existing literature is largely focused on external factors which facilitate successful reintegration. However, there is a paucity of research on the psychofortological factors, such as psychological strengths and posttraumatic growth, which may contribute to this process. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to identify and explore psychofortological factors which may contribute to the successful reintegration of adult male ex-offenders into society. This research was influenced by the paradigm of positive psychology. From this perspective, people should be assessed on both their emotional problems and their strengths. One of the main premises of the strengths perspective is that people are capable of changing (O’Brien, 2001). This change can be facilitated by identifying a person’s strengths and resources, and using one’s strengths may increase success in many areas of life (Compton, 2005). It is important to know what a person has learned from their experiences and what resources they used to overcome challenges (Smith, 2006). This is particularly important in the case of offenders, since these insights may contribute to more successful adaptation. Although there are various ways to transformation and rehabilitation, there may be important similarities in the viewpoints of those who are desisting from crime. Thus there is a need for such research which could ii provide useful information regarding psychofortological factors which may contribute to successful reintegration. A qualitative approach was employed to explore the personal experiences of ex-offenders who have successfully reintegrated into society. The participants consisted of five adult male ex-offenders, who were interviewed according to a semi-structured interview schedule. Content analysis of the interviews was done according to the approach of Miles and Huberman (1994)