Identifying Incarceration Turning Points Through Veteran Lived Experiences

Abstract

Veteran incarceration presents numerous social and public health problems, which often include re-incarceration, homelessness, unemployment, and suicide. Contemporary literature on veteran incarceration often relies on quantitative-based data. While this data is useful in certain settings, it often limits our knowledge and understanding of the problem. Our study used qualitative interviews to focus on veteran-centric views, experiences, and behaviors associated with incarceration. Guided by the Life Course perspective, our interviews yielded several novel turning point behaviors. These novel turning point behaviors provide a more in-depth and nuanced understanding of veteran incarceration, blend veteran centric behaviors with known incarceration factors, and provide a glimpse into how these behaviors interact with other known factors, such as homelessness and unemployment. Understanding how veterans give meaning to these turning point behaviors may assist health care providers in altering veteran risk responses and interrupt these pathways to incarceration.