Exit Interviews in Criminal Justice: A Research Note

Although exit interviews are common in business and educational contexts, they are utilized less frequently in the criminal justice system. This is unfortunate, however, as exit interviews can alert program staff to issues or areas for improvement, further contextualize and enrich qualitative data collected during program evaluations, and serve as a quality control check on original fieldwork. This study relates findings from an exit interview questionnaire administered to inmates following participation in a Bureau of Justice Assistance-sponsored jail reentry program in Ohio. Results provided support for the risk-needs-responsivity model, offered feedback to program staff, and highlighted the importance of obtaining data from key stakeholders in correctional programming–program participants.