Dissertation
Eigen haard is goud waard?
On 16 January 2020, Maaike Wensveen defended her thesis 'Eigen haard is goud waard?'. The doctoral research was supervised by Prof. P. Nieuwbeerta and Dr. J.M.H. Palmen.
- Author
- Maaike Wensveen
- Date
- 16 January 2020
- Links
- Leiden Repository
A stable housing situation is considered to be an important condition for a successful return to society after a period in prison. Despite this presumed importance of the housing situation of (ex-)prisoners, relatively few studies have been done on this topic, especially in the Netherlands. This thesis therefore provides insights into the housing situation and mobility of prisoners and ex-prisoners, and the relationship with recidivism. To answer research questions about housing, mobility and recidivism, data was used from the Dutch Prison Project, a longitudinal, nationwide study on the consequences of imprisonment.
One of the main findings was the large amount of variation in housing patterns of (ex-)prisoners. Many (ex-)prisoners have experienced periods of homelessness once or several times before or after their stay in prison. Homelessness is much more common among (ex-)prisoners than it is among the general Dutch population. Furthermore, ex-prisoners move home more often than people without a history of incarceration. Both homelessness and moving home seem to increase the chances of recidivism. This study underlined the importance of policymakers focusing on all aspects of housing, in order to achieve the biggest reduction in recidivism.