The research is the result of a collaboration between the Department of Justice, the Autonomous University of Barcelona, the University of Barcelona, as well as different Catalan entities that work for social reintegration
People deprived of their liberty long to recover their lives beyond the four walls, but returning to live in society after being admitted to a penitentiary is often not easy. In addition to bureaucratic obstacles, the search for work or housing is often compounded by the lack of a support network. Given this, how can a human bond promote social reintegration?
This was the question that motivated the two professors José Cid, from the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), and Antonio Andrés Pueyo, from the University of Barcelona (UB), to carry out research on whether the accompaniment for a year of a mentor could favor the social reintegration of people deprived of their liberty and prevent their recidivism.
A pioneering study that they have not developed alone, but has also had the participation of the Department of Justice and several social entities, including Suara Cooperativa.
In this context, as a result of our experience in the sector and the work that we were already developing with people deprived of their liberty, from Suara Cooperativa we contributed up to 15 volunteers who wanted to participate in this study, who have been accompanied as mentors by the Association of Social Action Volunteers (VAS).
Main conclusions
Although this project began ten years ago, the main conclusions have not been drawn so far because it has been necessary to follow up the participants for four years to analyze their evolution and see whether they reoffend or not.
On the one hand, it has been confirmed that when a person has a low risk of reintegration, mentoring works, since it manages to reduce reoffending and directly curbs antisocial behaviors. Through a bond as simple as having a person who listens, with whom to have a coffee or who accompanies them in their routine, it reduces the anxiety of returning to the streets, improves the self-esteem of the participants and helps them build a new identity completely far removed from their criminal past.
On the other hand, in the case of people who have a medium or high risk of reoffending, either because their behaviors or environments are more complex, mentoring support is not enough. The warmth and human support of a community mentor is a tool for reintegration, but comprehensive programs are also needed that add specialized technical intervention such as psychological support, training, job orientation or support in finding housing, among others.
Finally, the study also reveals that reintegration should not be a closed issue where the prison administration intervenes exclusively, but that the participation of these volunteers in the figure of mentors also denotes the importance of involving citizens in reintegration processes so that people deprived of their liberty have an opportunity to build a new life: the return home is warmer, more human, real and safe.
