The Social and Spatial Mismatch of Women Returning From Jail Contexts: An Intersectional Mixed-Methods Analysis

Abstract

Seminal work on spatial mismatch has shown that geographic isolation from job-rich areas resulted in unemployment for low-income women of color. Though social capital is a critical component of the job search for justice-involved individuals, justice-involved women of color may have unique barriers to accessing social capital related to spatial mismatch. This concurrent mixed-methods study addresses the interconnections of race, economic opportunity, social capital, and employment for a sample of 56 women returning from jail contexts. Results reveal racialized differences in the mobilization of social capital to address the spatial mismatch problem, identifying a source of inequity for women of color leaving carceral settings.