The study, led by Dr Martha Newson, Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Greenwich, and Dr Linus Peitz, looked at the experience of 164 UK prisoners to show how social bonding is linked with significant boosts to psychological need satisfaction, life satisfaction, and efficacy beliefs, as well as higher levels of wellbeing.
The study relates to the work done by the Twinning Project, a partnership between HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) and professional football clubs with the objective of twinning every prison in England and Wales with a local professional football club. The aim of the project is to improve prisoners mental and physical health, wellbeing and obtain a qualification which will help improve their life chances and gain employment on release.
Findings from this study suggest that participation in the Twinning Project has a positive impact on participants’ wellbeing.
Specifically, the pre-post analyses showed significant improvements to efficacy beliefs and life satisfaction, as well as increased identification with the Twinning Project and increased levels of psychological need satisfaction. For example, the percentages of prisoners who thought they could achieve the goals they set themselves at all times rose from 29% before the programme to 41% after, and of those who indicated that they were satisfied with their life (who scored above midpoint on a life satisfaction scale) increased from 74% to 89%, while the share of participants who identified with the Twinning Project significantly increased from 76% to 86%.
Stronger identification with the Twinning Project was directly linked to increased satisfaction of important psychological needs (e.g., feeling useful or close to other people), which in turn, helped to explain improvements in life satisfaction, personal efficacy as well as higher levels of optimism and happiness after the programme. This means that the more participants’ psychological needs were satisfied by the programme, the more optimistic they felt about their futures and the happier they felt.
First author, Dr Peitz, commented; “The satisfaction of psychological needs and levels of optimism are not just important indicators of prisoners’ wellbeing, but they are important factors for the overall prison climate. Boosting wellbeing among inmates can help make prisons safer environments for everyone, including staff and the entire prison population, which is really important considering the circumstances in many UK prisons today.”
For this study, data from adult prisoners was collected between March 2022 and May 2023 from 18 UK prisons where staff had received training to collect survey data at the first and last session of the programme.
The Twinning Project programme is designed to improve participants’ self-esteem and employability by delivering coaching and other accredited football qualifications in a group setting. The programme is aimed at prisoners within 24 months of release and has been delivered in over 70 prisons in the UK, as well as in the USA, Italy, South Africa, and Australia.
Senior author, Dr Newson stated; “We are facing a global prison crisis with new prisons not keeping up with the demands placed on the service due to overcrowding. Clearly, if we want to prevent people from returning to prison, we need to ensure they have an opportunity to engage in meaningful activities that truly have potential to turn their lives around. Our findings suggest football offers a valuable path to successful rehabilitation, which our ten year project will continue to investigate.”
Jo Wickens, Interim Head of Food, Physical Activity and Wellbeing in HMMPS said; “We have supported the national implementation of the Twinning Project in prisons in England and Wales. We are pleased to receive the findings of the Oxford University study and value the contribution it will make to the growing body of evidence around sport in custody. We look forward to working with the Twinning Project to understand the learning from this research.”
Hilton Freund Twinning Project CEO commented; "We are extremely, grateful to our academic partners, Dr Newson and Dr Peitz, who have carried out this valuable groundbreaking research. As a charity understanding the impact of the work we do, and ensuring that we continually asses what works and why is fundamental to our continued success. Through this evaluation we can say with confidence that football as a catalyst for change is undeniable, and that sport has the power to change lives and create safer communities".
The work was funded by a UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship.
The full paper is available to read here