TITLE:
Digital Divide Experienced by Formerly Incarcerated Individuals and Its Effect on Their Reintegration into Society
AUTHORS:
Tenesha Robinson
KEYWORDS:
Digital Divide, Formerly Incarcerated Individuals, Digital Skills, Reintegration, Recidivism
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.12 No.7,
July
18,
2024
ABSTRACT: Formerly incarcerated individuals are predominantly marginalized in terms of digital access attributed to rapid digital transformation. This has limited their ability to adequately prepare for employment post-release. This study sought to determine the digital divide experienced by those individuals and its effect on their reintegration into society. A quantitative cross-sectional research design was adopted, and data were collected from 65 formerly incarcerated individuals in North Carolina. Binary logistic regression results indicated that awareness among the incarcerated individuals insignificantly predicted class participation (B = [0.511], S.E. = [0.516], Wald = [0.979], p = 0.323). The study further revealed that there was no significant difference between formerly incarcerated individuals with no class participation and their willingness to learn and apply (M = 2.45, SD = 0.522) and with class participation (M = 2.76, SD = 0.435; t(50) = −1.958, p = 0.056). The analysis also showed that there was no difference between formerly incarcerated individuals with no class participation and their self-efficacy to learn and apply (M = 3.318; SD = 0.84477) and with class participation (M = 3.414; SD = 0.8616; t(44) = −0.324, p = 0.747). Finally, the study results revealed that there was a significant relationship between incarcerated individuals who want to learn IT skills and their employment prospects after incarceration (r = 0.576; p = 0.000). The study results indicated that despite participation and awareness in correctional education having a positive and significant relationship with class participation, it does not directly lead to improved self-efficacy or willingness to learn and apply digital skills.