Why Are So Many Americans in Prison?

Acknowledgments

The findings in this book rest on our research over the past decade on various aspects of incarceration and corrections policy. Along the way we have received valuable feedback, encouragement, and support from countless colleagues , friends, and family. We are especially thankful for the feedback over the years from Shawn Bushway, Phil Cook, Sheldon Danziger, John Ellwood, Harry Holzer, Jens Ludwig, Rob MacCoun, Justin McCrary, Daniel Nagin, Derek Neil, Emily Owens, Peter Reuter, Jill Weader, David Weiman, and Bruce Western. We are also grateful to our coauthors from several research projects discussed in this book: Paolo Buonanno, Aaron Chalfin, Candace Hamilton, Rucker Johnson, Elizabeth Kneebone, Chris Meyer, Sarah Tahamont , and Rudolf Winter-Ebmer. We are especially grateful to Eugene Smolensky for encouraging us to write a book in the first place and for expecting us to finish it eventually. We would also like to thank Eric Wanner and Suzanne Nichols of the Russell Sage Foundation for their generous support for our research over the years and for their patience with our highly nonlinear pace of progress in completing the manuscript for this book. Our families have always been a constant source of inspiration and support for all that we do. Steven Raphael wishes to especially thank Kelly Raphael, Antonio Raphael, and Ariana Raphael for their unwavering love and support and for the many ideas that they have contributed over the years to this and many other projects. Michael Stoll wishes to thank Kenya, for her unconditional love and open mind in debating and discussing the many ideas that came up during this project and others, even while she faced pressure to achieve tenure, and daughters Emera, Samina, and Myla, for helping keep life rich with joy and meaning. AcknoWledgMentS ...