Early Prisoner Release Due to COVID-19: Can People’s Opinions be Changed?

Authors

Abstract

Due to the high rates of infection and contagion of the COVID-19 virus in Canadian prisons, the Parole Board of Canada implemented new guidelines to facilitate the early release of low-risk prisoners to limit the spread of novel coronavirus. This study examines Canadians’ opinions regarding the early release of prisoners from correctional institutions due to COVID-19 and seeks to discover if psychoeducational intervention can positively alter these opinions. Additionally, level of education was examined to ascertain whether years of formal education had an effect on openness to change. Data from 289 Canadians found that psychoeducational intervention was an effective way to improve attitudes towards the early release of prisoners and that those with a higher level of education were not more affected by psychoeducational intervention; however, it was noted that those with a higher level of education expressed less concern overall regarding the increase of released offenders in the community.

Published

2022-09-30

Issue

Vol. 7 No. 2 (2022): CJUR 7(2)

Section

Articles

License


Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).