Agency, Criminogenic Risk and Needs, and Recidivism: A Prospective Longitudinal Study Including 14,000 Adult Justice-involved Individuals.

Abstract

This study examines the role and importance of agency, defined as the ability to recognize personal issues and motivation to change. More specifically, the study aims to explore whether agency can help overcome criminogenic risk and needs in the context of community re-entry among justice-involved individuals. Based on a sample of 14,000 adult males sentenced to probation or incarceration, a series of survival analyses (e.g., Cox proportional hazards) were used to investigate the association between criminogenic risk and needs and agency-related indicators in relation to recidivism. The findings underscore the importance of criminogenic risks and needs while emphasizing the role of motivation to change as a possible moderator. Addressing criminogenic risk and needs while justice-involved individuals face numerous barriers and challenges make desistance from crime a long and difficult process, especially if interventions do not support agentic decisions and behaviors.