The Impact of Traumatic Brain Injury on the Receipt of Services Following Release from Prison

Abstract

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is found at substantially higher rates among incarcerated individuals compared to the general adult population. Individuals with TBI report a higher likelihood to experience a range of deleterious outcomes including substance abuse, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, aggressive behavior, and violence. Thus, a history of TBI is likely to lead to the types of behaviors that will significantly increase the odds of an individual returning to incarceration post-release, as supported by recent research with a cohort of state prisoners. TBI has largely gone unaddressed by prison reentry programs that are integral to rehabilitating individuals returning to the community. Relatively little is known, however, about the effects of TBI on the receipt of services post-release. Additionally, few studies have examined sex differences in the prevalence of TBI in reentry populations. This chapter uses data from a multi-state prisoner reentry program randomized control trial to examine whether individuals with TBI are significantly different than their peers without TBI with respect to a variety of demographic and psychological metrics and in expressions of needs for and participation in services and programming during the transition from incarceration to the community.