ALL 50 PAROLEES WERE RELEASED FROM THE PRISON IN THE SAME YEAR, AND WERE INTERVIEWED BY THE AUTHOR. PAROLEES' PERSONALITY SCORES WERE OBTAINED FROM CORRECTIONS RECORDS. THE TWO GROUPS DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY IN THE NUMBER OF JOBS HELD SINCE RELEASE, SALARY OF THE FIRST JOB HELD AFTER RELEASE, AND RECIDIVISM. THE MOST YOUTHFUL OFFENDERS, BLACK PERSONS, THOSE WITH A HISTORY OF PREVIOUS PROBATION OR PAROLE, AND INMATES WHO DID NOT GO TO COMMUNITY PRERELEASE CENTERS WERE MORE SUCCESSFUL THAN THOSE NOT TRAINED, AND THEY BENEFITED MOST FROM THE PROGRAM. NEVERTHELESS, THOSE VOCATIONALLY TRAINED WERE SLIGHTLY MORE LIKELY TO RECIDIVATE IN THE FIRST 8 MONTHS AFTER RELEASE THAN THOSE NOT TRAINED. PERSONS TRAINED HOWEVER, WERE, SIGNIFICANTLY LESS TENSE, MORE TRANQUIL, AND LESS FRUSTRATED ON RETURN TO THE COMMUNITY THAN WERE THOSE NOT TRAINED. IN ADDITION, VOCATIONAL TRAINING APPEARED TO ALLOW INMATES TO MAINTAIN POSITIVE SELF CONCEPTS AND SUPPLIED THEM WITH SKILLS USABLE ON RELEASE. DATA DO NOT PERMIT THE CONCLUSION THAT VOCATIONAL TRAINING HAS A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON INMATES. IT IS RECOMMENDED THAT (1) SELECTION PROCEDURES BE IMPROVED TO TARGET THOSE MOST LIKELY TO BENEFIT FROM VOCATIONAL TRAINING; (2) TRAINING NOT BE OVERTLY OR COVERTLY COERCIVE; (3) IMPROVED METHODS OF REINTEGRATING TRAINEES BE DEVISED; AND (4) ADDITIONAL RESEARCH FOCUS TRADE SKILLS USE, VARIABLES OTHER THAN RECIDIVISM, AND THE IMPACT OF TOTAL INSTITUTIONS ON INDIVIDUALS. A LITERATURE REVIEW, TABLES, BIBLIOGRAPHY, AND APPENDIXES PRESENTING STUDY INSTRUMENTS, ARE INCLUDED. (CFW)