Regarding this question, we need to understand it from multiple angles, because “rehabilitation” is a complex social, psychological, and personal growth question that cannot be answered simply with “yes” or “no”. ### 1. **Real-world challenges** -**Social prejudice and discrimination**: People with criminal records often face discrimination in employment, housing, and socialization. Even if they really want to change, the rejection of the outside world may make it difficult for them to re-integrate into society, or even be forced to return to their old environment. -**Personal psychological disorders**: The experience of serving a sentence may bring shame, low self-esteem or trauma. Some people will fall into a cycle of self-denial and lack the confidence to change. In addition, the prison environment itself may strengthen violence or anti-social behavior, especially when corrective education is insufficient. -**Environmental pressure**: If there is a lack of family support or a positive social circle after being released from prison, and the original incentives for crime (such as poverty and bad relationships) still exist, the risk of reoffending is indeed higher. ### 2. **Possibility of rehabilitation** -**Individual differences**: Everyone has different abilities to change. Research shows that **motivation, support system and opportunity**are key factors. Many people have successfully returned to society through education, psychological counseling, vocational skills training, etc. -**Successful cases**: There are examples of people released from prison at home and abroad who have become entrepreneurs, social workers or anti-crime advocates. For example, the U.S. “Prison Entrepreneurship Program” (PEP) has helped many former prisoners start legal businesses. -**Policies and support**: In countries or regions that provide comprehensive support measures (such as rehabilitation justice in Northern Europe), the recidivism rate is significantly lower. This shows the importance of systematic support. ### 3. **Inspiration from data and research** -The rate of reoffending is affected by a variety of factors (type of crime, length of sentence, support after release from prison, etc.). For example, data from the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics show that about 44% of released persons are arrested again within 5 years, but this proportion has decreased significantly among groups participating in education/vocational training. -**“Label effect"**: If society continues to regard these people as “criminals”, it may instead promote them to identify with this identity, forming a vicious circle. ### 4. **What can we do? ** -**Social level**: Promote “de-labeling” policies (such as sealing criminal records), provide fair employment opportunities, and improve the community correction system. -**Personal level**: Avoid generalizing judgments, and give respect and support to those who are willing to change. Many reformers mentioned that the phrase ”I believe in you" may be the beginning of their turning point. ### Summary “Difficult” is not equal to ”impossible". Although systemic barriers exist, countless cases have proved that with proper support, people can reshape their lives. What is more worth thinking about is this question: as members of society, are we willing to create space for this kind of change? If more specific information is needed (such as recidivism rates in different countries, rehabilitation project cases, etc.), it can be further supplemented.