Second Chance Stipends RCT

University of Pennsylvania

Status: Not yet enrolling

Conditions: Poverty; Incarceration

Treatments: Other: Cash transfer

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT07265375

11235 (Registry Identifier)

Details and patient eligibility

About

Investigators will execute a mixed methods randomized controlled trial to determine the impacts of cash transfers of $750 per month for 12 months. Investigators will measure the impacts of the cash transfers on physical and mental health, housing stability, healthcare utilization, financial stability, and interactions with the criminal legal system.

Full description

The transition from incarceration to community reintegration represents a finite time period of unique challenges, often exacerbated by fines and other structural constraints associated with limited access to housing, the workforce, and public benefits. As such, individuals exiting prisons are most vulnerable for recidivism and other poor wellbeing outcomes during the initial period after their release.

The project will enroll approximately 200 individuals in the Omaha, NE area to receive $750 per month over a one-year period. Another 250 will be assigned to the control group and will not receive the cash transfers but will be eligible to participate in research activities. Adults exiting Nebraska state prisons will be eligible to participate if they are exiting prison during the specified time frame and do not have a conviction of a sex crime or homicide.

Longitudinal repeated measures will be utilized through surveys conducted at baseline, 6 months, 12 months, and 18 month intervals. Future involvement with the criminal legal system will be measured using linked administrative data from the Department of Corrections. A select group of 30 participants across study groups will also be invited to participate in in-depth interviews with a CGIR research scientist and team at multiple time points.

Enrollment: 450 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Aged 18 or older
• Exiting Nebraska state prisons during the study enrollment period

Exclusion criteria

- Conviction of a sex crime or homicide

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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450 participants in 2 patient groups

Treatment

Experimental group

Description:

Recipients of stipend

Treatment:

Other: Cash transfer

Control

No Intervention group

Description:

No intervention