The Quest for Gainful Employment: Former Prisoner Experiences Managing a Socially Stigmatized Invisible Identity

The former prisoner identity can be described as a socially devalued identity that is not visible or readily apparent to others (i.e. Chaudoir & Fisher, 2010). Employment is an essential means through which former prisoners can be successfully reintegrated into society (Visher, Winterfield, & Coggeshall, 2005). However, former prisoners are faced with the challenge of navigating through a labor market filled with numerous barriers and social stigmas. Former prisoners represent a population whose voices are typically left unheard in organizational practice and in the management literature. The purpose of this study was to develop a better understanding of the psychological mechanisms that inform identity management post-release and the associated employment effects. To address this purpose, this study employed an explanatory mixed methods design. This involved the collection and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data. The quantitative inquiry found significant relationships between internalized stigma and disclosure and concealment such that those who engaged in disclosure strategies were less likely to engage in concealment strategies. The results suggest that individuals do internalize stigma post-release, and that this affects their employment outcomes. However, contrary to the theorized expectations, identity management does not appear to explain this link. In light of the limited knowledge pertaining to managing an invisible stigmatized identity throughout the employment process, I was prompted to further explore the depth of individual experiences with employment post-incarceration. In the qualitative portion of this study, I reflect on interviews with twenty-two formerly federally incarcerated men, released on parole, to understand how their self-identification is shaped within and across their experiences of employment seeking or attaining after prison. Specifically, I explore developments in the identity management experiences and practices releasees engage in as they navigate the pre-employment and later employment processes as well as the interplay between the effects of pre-and post-incarceration experiences on releasee interpretations of self and of work. This study contributes to our understanding of identity sensemaking as well as to our understanding of the experiences of social stigma and identity invisibility through the employment reintegration process.