The group of inmates who chose to take college-level courses were not already less likely than other inmates to commit crimes after being released.
选择读书的人比选择没读书的人,在读书之前不是已经更少可能去犯罪,而 after being released form prison, inmates who had taken such courses committed far fewer crimes overall than other inmates,这个说明是读书起到了减少犯罪的作用,不是因为这些人本身就老实,排除他因.