Discrimination against individuals with criminal records is not only unfair and unjust, but it can also hinder the rehabilitation and reintegration of formerly convicted individuals into society (Jacobs 2015; Kirk and Wakefield 2018; Pager 2003; Rovira 2024). Inspired by Devah Pager’s seminal audit study on the impact of a criminal record on employment prospects in the U.S. (Pager 2003), the past 25 years have seen substantial research across various countries aimed at examining the employment effects of a criminal record. In collaboration with Dave Kirk (University of Pennsylvania) and Mike Vuolo (The Ohio State University), we are now conducting the first meta-analysis of field experiments investigating employment discrimination against individuals with criminal records. Meta-analyses enable researchers to pool study results, capitalizing on study similarities while accounting for differences across studies (Field and Gillett 2010; Tong and Guo 2022). You can get access to the OSF webpage of our project, that includes the preregistration document, here: https://osf.io/5hzqv/
We would be very interested in your assistance with identifying any meta-analyses related to criminal records. Below, you’ll find an updated list of field experiments on discrimination based on criminal records that we are currently reviewing. If you are aware of any additional studies, please email me at marti.rovira[at]upf.edu.
We are specifically seeking field experiments examining employer behavior toward job applicants with criminal conviction records. To be included, studies must feature a control group of applicants with no criminal record, and the allocation of job openings must be randomized. Since our focus is on comparing the impact of a criminal record with no record, we will exclude studies where the comparison involves applicants with criminal records and an additional ‘treatment’ aimed at mitigating the record’s effects (e.g., applicants showing both a criminal record and a certificate of rehabilitation).
Thank you for your help!
List of studies (in alphabetical order):
Agan, A., & Starr, S. (2017). Ban the Box, Criminal Records, and Racial Discrimination: A Field Experiment*. The Quarterly Journal of Economics (Vol. 133, Issue 1, pp. 191–235).
Ahmed, A. M., & Lång, E. (2017). The employability of ex-offenders: a field experiment in the Swedish labor market. IZA Journal of Labor Policy (Vol. 6, Issue 1).
Baert, S., & Verhofstadt, E. (2014). Labour market discrimination against former juvenile delinquents: evidence from a field experiment. Applied Economics (Vol. 47, Issue 11, pp. 1061–1072).
Boshier, R., & Johnson, D. (1974). Does conviction affect employment opportunities. British Journal of Criminology, 14, 264.
Buikhuisen, W., & Dijksterhuis, F. P. (1971). Delinquency and stigmatisation. British Journal of Criminology, 11, 185.
Cerda-Jara, M., & Harding, D. (2024). Criminal Record Stigma in the Labor Market for College Graduates: A Mixed Methods Study. Sociological Science (Vol. 11, pp. 42–66)
Cundiff, P. R. (2016). Erasing the Mark of a Criminal Record: Examining the Effect of Education on Ex-Offender Employment. Corrections (Vol. 1, Issue 2, pp. 127–138).
Decker, S. H., Spohn, C., Ortiz, N. R., & Hedberg, E. (2014). Criminal stigma, race, gender, and employment: An expanded assessment of the consequences of imprisonment for employment. Final Report. USA: USA Department of Justice.
Deliens, L. (1983). Ongelijke sociale distributie van de tewerkstellingskansen van ex‐gedetineerden. Een empirisch onderzoek naar de reacties van het bedrijfsleven op schriftelijke sollicitaties. Panopticon, 4, 530-541.
Dirkzwager, A., Blokland, A., Nannes, K., & Vroonland, M. (2015). Effecten van detentie op het vinden van werk en een woning. Tijdschrift voor Criminologie, 57(1), 5-30.
Galgano, S. W. (2009). Barriers to Reintegration: An Audit Study of the Impact of Race and Offender Status on Employment Opportunities for Women. Social Thought and Research
Leasure, P. (2019). Misdemeanor records and employment outcomes: An experimental study. Crime & Delinquency, 65(13), 1850-1872.
Leasure, P., & Kaminski, R. J. (2021). The impact of a multiple conviction record on hiring outcomes. Crime & Delinquency, 67(6-7), 1022–1045.
Leasure, P., & Zhang, G. (2021). Women, criminal records, and certificates of relief: An experimental study. Justice Evaluation Journal, 4(2), 260-280.
Lindsay, S. L. (2021). The prison credential dilemma: How race, criminal records, and contradictory signals shape post-prison employment and job search strategies. PhD Thesis. The Ohio State University.
Mobasseri, S. (2019). Race, Place, and Crime: How Violent Crime Events Affect Employment Discrimination. American Journal of Sociology (Vol. 125, Issue 1, pp. 63–104).
Onuferova, M. (2016). The effect of criminal record on employment prospects: A field experiment. PhD thesis. Prague University of Economics and Business).
Pager, D. (2003). The Mark of a Criminal Record. American Journal of Sociology (Vol. 108, Issue 5, pp. 937–975). University of Chicago Press.
Pager, D., Bonikowski, B., & Western, B. (2009). Discrimination in a Low-Wage Labor Market. American Sociological Review (Vol. 74, Issue 5, pp. 777–799). SAGE Publications.
Pager, D., Western, B., & Sugie, N. (2009). Sequencing Disadvantage: Barriers to Employment Facing Young Black and White Men with Criminal Records. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science (Vol. 623, Issue 1, pp. 195–213).
Peelen, A. A. E., van de Weijer, S. G. A., van den Berg, C. J. W., & Leukfeldt, E. R. (2022). Employment Opportunities for Applicants with Cybercrime Records: A Field Experiment. Social Science Computer Review (Vol. 41, Issue 5, pp. 1562–1580).
Ripper, B. (2022). Formerly incarcerated women’s reentry, employment, and “rehabilitation”. PhD Thesis. American University.
Rovira, M. (2019). The stigma of a criminal record in the labour market in Spain: An experimental study. European Journal of Probation, 11(1), 14-29
Rovira, M. (2024). Invisible stripes? A field experiment on the disclosure of a criminal record in the British labour market and the potential effects of introducing ban-the-box policies. British Journal of Criminology, 64(4), 827-845.
Schwartz, R. D., & Skolnick, J. H. (1962). Two studies of legal stigma. Social problems, 10(2), 133-142.
Uggen, C., Vuolo, M., Lageson, S., Ruhland, E., & K. WHITHAM, H. I. L. A. R. Y. (2014). The edge of stigma: An experimental audit of the effects of low‐level criminal records on employment. Criminology, 52(4), 627-654.
van den Berg, C. J. W., Blommaert, L., Bijleveld, C. C. J. H., & Ruiter, S. (2020). Employment opportunities for ex-offenders. Research in Social Stratification and Mobility (Vol. 65, p. 100476).
van den Berg, C., Versteege, N., Dondorp, E., & van der Wal, I. (2020). Weer vrij om aan de slag te gaan? Een onderzoek naar de invloed van etniciteit, geslacht en strafblad op de kansen op de arbeidsmarkt. Mens & Maatschappij, 95(4), 339-356.