The Prisoner's Journey Study

The Prisoner’s Journey® has been changing lives in prisons around the world since 2014. From the beginning, qualitative stories and testimonies of program impact had been shared, but we wanted empirical proof to show that the program was creating lasting life change. In 2021, Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion was commissioned to conduct a comprehensive, longitudinal evaluation of the program. Empirical evidence was found that proved that this program truly transforms prisoners’ lives.

To test our hypotheses, we applied structural equation modeling to analyze data from 506 prisoners in Colombia and South Africa, who participated in pretest and posttest surveys. As hypothesized, we found that completion of The Prisoner’s Journey increased religiosity, which in turn fostered motivation for identity change, the perception of meaning and purpose in life, and the virtues of forgiveness, accountability, and self-control. In addition, the increased perception of meaning and purpose in life and two virtues (forgiveness and self-control) decreased negative emotions and the risk of interpersonal aggression.

Finding One

Respect and Obedience

Program participation increases forgiveness, accountability, gratitude and self-control and reduced feelings of depression, anxiety and anger. The program increased the likelihood of changed behavior and decreased displays of volatile behavior. Program participants become more respectful and obedient, leading to a "culture change” in prisons.

Finding Two

Interpersonal Aggression

Prisoners who participated in The Prisoner's Journey increased self-control, forgiveness and gratitude, while reducing the risk of engaging in aggression toward other prisoners.

Finding Three

Responsibility

Program participants were better at taking responsibility, as they could acknowledge their wrongs and fault. Heightened responsibility-taking helps prisoners rebuild agency, establish positive relationships with family and avoid committing crimes post-release.

Finding Four

Post-Release

The Prisoner's Journey participants undergo changes that create profound implications upon released. Graduates recidivate less frequently than other ex-offenders, are more optimistic about reintegration and are more likely to adopt a mindset of responsibility toward employment.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is this study?

A longitudinal evaluation of the impact of The Prisoner’s Journey program on prisoner rehabilitation, conducted by researchers at the Baylor University Institute for Studies of Religion.

What is The Prisoner's Journey?

The Prisoner’s Journey is an in-prison course designed to transform the lives of prisoners, from the inside out, by introducing them to restorative principles taught by Jesus, who was also a prisoner. It is centered on the book of Mark in the Bible and is facilitated by trained inmates or volunteers. The program invites participants to consider the teachings of Jesus. They are also asked to reflect on their wrongdoing, emphasizing that the “reason there’s something wrong with the world is because there’s something wrong with us.” They come to look at their choices and actions through the filter of Jesus’s actions, example and words.

When was the study conducted?

This is the first study of its kind to examine faith-based programming in prisons on a multinational basis. In fact, very few studies exist about prison populations in developing countries. Additionally, Prison Fellowship International commissioning, cooperating with and funding this university research is a major contribution to the global study of prisoners and rehabilitation.

Where did the research take place?

The first phase was conducted during a 40-month period from January 2018 to April 2021.

Who was studied?

Seven prisons in South Africa and Colombia.

What were the key findings?

Nearly 900 prisoners. The average participant age was 35. Their charges were distributed across violence, property, sex, drug and other offenses in both experimental and control groups. Most participants were from Christian backgrounds, but positive outcomes emerged for participants from other faiths or without faith.

What is the significance of The Prisoner's Journey and this study?

Participants in this first phase of the study were largely Christian (more than 80% identified as either Catholic or Protestant). Participants who identified as “no” or “other” religion comprised more than 10%.

What were the study's limitations?

  • Selection bias due in part to a lack of random assignment. Since the equivalence of treatment and control groups could not be established, particularly with respect to inmates’ previous religious involvement and due to different security levels of various prisons, The Prisoner’s Journey’s observed effect on religiosity may not be fully attributed to the program.
  • Nontrivial attrition, that is, about four out of 10 pretest participants did not return for the posttest. While older, female, and more prosocial and religious prisoners participating in the second survey is not surprising, The Prisoner’s Journey’s impact on religiosity or the effect of religiosity on rehabilitation might have been overestimated to the extent that the returning prisoners were more motivated to change themselves than the dropouts, if they had not over-reported their progress in rehabilitation.
  • How gang presence in both countries’ prisons affected the impact of religion and The Prisoner’s Journey on prisoner rehabilitation was not evaluated. This is a worthy topic for future research.