The interplay of family relationships and visits in the process of prisoner recidivism (PID027)

3.52pm – 4.14pm BST, 14 May 2025 ‐ 22 mins

Parallel Workshops

Imprisonment damages family ties, and the pains of imprisonment thesis (Sykes, 1958) suggests that the physical separation and emotional trauma of imprisonment place a significant strain on family relationships. A number of studies have shown that the maintenance of social ties and increased family attachment strongly contribute to the development of desistance and thus significantly impact the successful recidivism of offenders (Klein et al., 2002). 
Between March and May 2024, we conducted a study with colleagues from the National University of Public Service (Miklós Tihanyi Ph.D., Máté Sivadó Ph.D., Márta Fekete Ph.D., and Noémi Baráth) with the permission of the Hungarian Prison Service in Hungary, investigating the influence of family ties on recidivism. In this context, we completed a questionnaire with 224 recidivist prisoners in 5 prisons in Hungary (Tiszalök National Prison; Baracska Unit of the Middle-Transdanubian National Prison; Vác Strict and Medium Regime Prison; Hajdú-Bihar County Remand Prison; Kiskunhalas National Prison).
We hypothesize that the reintegration system, which may work very well within the prison walls, cannot counterbalance the crime-attracting factors in the offenders' family background. The main research question was to investigate which family factors are most likely to reinforce re-offending, whether they can be identified as the most likely to prevent re-offending, and how regular attendance contributes to re-offending. We were curious to find out what correlations can be observed between the family background, financial and living conditions of recidivist prisoners, and the reception of visitors, and in my presentation, I will describe these correlations in detail.