Social Reintegration: What It Is And What Are Its Effects
Many people suffer some circumstance throughout their lives, or take some action, that leads them to lose their freedom and see their contact with the community curtailed. If this deprivation occurs over a long period of time, or the reasons for it stem from a poor adjustment with society, it may be necessary a process of social reintegration
This process is somewhat complex and sometimes its effectiveness is a matter of controversy. But what is it?. Throughout this article we are going to talk about the concept of social reintegration, areas in which it may be required and factors that can both hinder and facilitate its success.
Social reintegration is understood as the process by which an individual who for some reason has abandoned or been deprived of freedom and connection and participation in society try to become part of the community again
It is a systematic process that seeks correct and modify all those elements that may have contributed to generating said loss of freedom and prevent and prevent its recurrence.
In other words, readaptation to society is sought in such a way that the errors or elements that led him to commit a crime or to suffer deprivation of contact with the environment are corrected.
In this way, social reintegration is closely linked to the correctional services that come into operation once the person has violated the rules necessary for coexistence, which is why psychological intervention measures are taken to try that this dynamic of antisocial behavior is not repeated again
Areas and types of population that require reintegration
We generally talk about social reintegration in the penitentiary environment in the case of subjects who have committed crimes or crimes for which they have been tried and sentenced to prison.
In fact, technically the sentence of deprivation of liberty itself has a purpose theoretically focused on the prevention of recidivism and social reintegration in addition to compensation for the damages generated and the protection of citizens and the subject himself.
In this case, the social reintegration process includes a wide variety of interventions, both at a therapeutic level (if they need it) and at the level of training that allows them to participate in society once their sentence ends, to improve their situation. and increase prosociality and positive connection with the environment while seeking to reduce the possibilities of recidivism in criminal behavior.
But not only convicted people who have been criminally sentenced are reintegrated into society. Anyone who has been deprived of liberty for any reason may need a social reintegration process. In this sense It may be required by people who have been admitted to a psychiatric hospital or who have been victims or witnesses of traumatic events, such as kidnappings or attacks.
Social reintegration programs usually include occupational training and workshops, therapy programs for different psychiatric problems or for the prevention of antisocial behavior, job guidance and support. They may also include family interventions, training to prepare the subject for life in freedom, association and connection with community resources.
Skills training is common, including social or job search. Also areas such as health, leisure or academic training are elements to be addressed.
Aspects that facilitate reintegration into society
Reintegration into society is complex, especially for those people who have been deprived of liberty for a long time or who have psychosocial adjustment difficulties. However, there are factors that can facilitate the process.
One of the main factors that favor success when reintegrating can be found in the subject’s own will to change in addition to the presence of sufficient cognitive faculties to understand one’s own actions and their consequences and awareness of the need for change.
Another of the greatest predictors of success is found in the presence of personal motivations and life goals. These goals may include recovery of family relationships (especially highlighting that of children), get a job and stability or completely change your life. In the case of convicted individuals, the recovery of their life and the avoidance of being deprived again may be an objective per se.
The presence of social support, the absence of conflicts with the family and the perception of support On its part, there are other very relevant factors, as long as they are a support in the change and do not carry out acts of sabotage or are forces contrary to the modification of behavior. The presence of a partner is also generally positive, as long as it is not an unequal relationship in which there is a relationship of dominance/submission or there is humiliation or mistreatment.
Other factors to take into account and that have been associated with greater ease of reintegration are medium-high socio-educational levels, the absence of substance use or untreated mental health problems, the lack of treatment or attempts of previous reintegration, the absence of antecedents to the event that has generated the deprivation of liberty and not having previously relapsed into criminal conduct.
Elements that can make reintegration difficult
On the other hand, there are also factors that make reintegration more complicated. One of the main ones is the absence of the capacity for self-criticism or the lack of awareness of the need for change. The lack of empathy also represents a great difficulty, as well as the lack of personal responsibility and vision for the future.
Lack of social support or an environment that facilitates criminal behavior or enhance the cause of deprivation of liberty are also aspects that can harm reintegration. The lack of resources to introduce changes, especially with regard to the personal and cognitive, as well as the lack of vital goals or expectations to achieve the change can complicate the process.
Another element that can make social reintegration difficult may be precisely one of the reasons why they require said reintegration: drug use Such consumption is one of the factors that can cause reintegration measures to fail in contexts such as prisons, especially if the treatment of dependency is taken into account and psycho-educational measures are implemented to cause a change.
In the case of consumer subjects, The type of substance and the duration of abstinence are also elements to consider when dealing with their reintegration over time. In general, this may take longer in polydrug users or heroin dependents, while users dependent on “soft” drugs tend to be reinserted more quickly. Of course, as long as there is a commitment to change and a therapeutic process behind it. Also the general state of health prior to withdrawal or deprivation of liberty.
Regarding subjects with severe mental disorders who have required hospitalization, the number of previous admissions or the experience of situations such as sexual abuse or suicide attempts should also be taken into account. All of this can negatively affect or lengthen the process that the subject must go through if they want to become part of the community again.
Does everyone reintegrate?
As a general rule, it is estimated that at least in Spain around 69-70% of prisoners successfully reintegrate into society without repeating the behavior that led them to prison, something that, however, leaves the number of convicts who do so at one third. In this sense, social reintegration programs can be useful for a wide variety of subjects, although the existence of few programs and the presence of excessively limited resources to carry them out successfully has often been criticized.
However, there are cases whose reintegration is usually much more complicated, with current techniques being relatively successful. In this sense, subjects with psychopathy stand out especially, who have often been considered impossible to reintegrate due to lacking empathy (despite the fact that other studies seem to indicate that change in various factors is possible).
Another of the sectors with the worst prognosis is systematic sexual offenders, being one of the sectors with the highest probability of recidivism. In general, the higher the level of recidivism, the less effective the reintegration measures will be.
Regarding subjects with mental disorders, substance addiction or victims of traumatic events, the success of reintegration can be very variable depending on the case, although in general it can also be highly successful as long as a appropriate therapeutic process and that this is followed by the subject.
