Can Yoga Overcome Criminality? The Impact of Yoga on Recidivism in Israeli Prisons

Abstract

In recent years, yoga practices have been integrated into formal prison rehabilitation programs of the Israel Prison Service (IPS), as part of the informal education system, giving rise to innovative criminological theories such as positive criminology that emphasize the development of offenders’ strengths by facilitating rehabilitation and reintegration processes. The purpose of the present study was to examine the correlation between yoga practice and recidivism among released prisoners who participated in yoga programs during their incarceration in comparison with a matched control group of those who did not participate in yoga programs over a follow-up period of 5 years. To examine the effectiveness of the program, propensity score matching was used to compile the comparison group from among all convicted prisoners who were released from the Israeli prisons. Study results indicate that yoga may affect recidivism, supported by a finding of lower recidivism rates among released prisoners who had practiced yoga during their incarceration, compared with a matched control group. However, further study is needed including randomized controlled trials (RCTs). In light of these positive results, we recommend policy-makers consider expanding alternative practices such as yoga into prisons, in recognition of their contribution to the rehabilitation process through the development of personal and social strengths.

Sufi Non-Doing Offender Rehabilitation: Positive and Peacemaking Criminology in Practice

“…Offender rehabilitation is a challenging goal that calls for creative innovations. Innovative spiritual-based methods such as yoga and meditation are considered to be effective methods (Barrett, 2016; Himelstein, 2011; Kovalsky et al, 2020; Norman, 2015; Ronel et al, 2013), however, they are typically applied in restricted and local programs. The aim of this paper is to present an application of the spiritual principle of non-doing in offender rehabilitation, where there is no stated intention to rehabilitate and no specific program , as practiced by the Islamic Sufi peacemaking route.…”

“…Therefore, it suggests dealing with crime through love, compassion, and empathy, indicating a nonviolent perspective of criminology and criminal justice that has the potential to end suffering, and thus to end crime (Pepinski, 2015). In the realm of crime and social deviance, we are acquainted with the desistance model through non-doing in rehabilitative groups that use Vipassana (Ronel et al, 2013) or yoga (Barrett, 2016; Kovalsky et al, 2020; Norman, 2015), and programs that involve modeling and reflective practices such as the twelve-step programs (Chen & Gueta, 2015; Ronel, 1998). Referring to the issue of the ownership of the criminal act, McNeill (2006) perceives probation practitioners as supporters of desistance processes (that belong to the desister) rather than providers of correctional treatment (that belongs to the expert).…”

Prisoners’ Educational Experiences in Five Different Prison Sports Programmes: A Research Note

“…However, research on the educational experiences of prisoners during organized sports activities is scarce. The few studies that exist found that some specific sport interventions-from strength training to rugby or yoga classes-promote positive change in attitudes towards offending, help to reduce aggression levels and antisocial behavior, or lead to increased impulse control [17][18][19][20]. Furthermore, studies showed that sports programmes in prison can be a unique means to promote education [21] and contribute to learning rules and norms [22].…”