Thy brother's keeper: A review of the literature on correctional officers

Individualized offender risk models do not account for expected reductions in risk that are caused by programmatic interventions, in part because of a presumption of program ineffectiveness. We examined two relatively unevaluated types of correctional programs—community-based prison release programs and prison furloughs—for adult males in the Massachusetts Department of Correction to determine whether there was an identifiable intervention effect on recidivism rates. We studied three samples of male inmates who were released during the 1970s, using base expectancy methodology to control for their background characteristics. We also examined 11-year trends in recidivism, comparing program participants to nonparticipants. Furlough participation, both alone and followed by prerelease, appears to have a pronounced and consistent positive impact on lowered recidivism. Implications for reintegration theory, risk assessment policy, and research are discussed.     

Race,masculinity, and boot camp failure

Black men, especially those in the lower-class are stereotyped as hypermasculine. Such stereotypes may affect placement in criminal justice programs as well as whether offenders successfully complete programming given placement. This article considers whether the intersection of class and race affect boot camp failure. Using data from MacKenzie’s evaluation of correctional boot camps, results show that neither race, nor the interaction of race with indicators of orientation towards decent or street behavior has any effect on dropping out of boot camp. What is significant in predicting boot camp completion is the offender’s belief prior to beginning the program that he is “tough enough” to handle the institution. However, this result is opposite of expected for black men. The implications of this result and future directions are considered.

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Cost matters: a randomized experiment comparing recidivism between two styles of prisons

This study drew on a cost–benefit method to compare recidivism between two groups of inmates. Subjects were randomly assigned to serve a 6-month ‘early release’ term in one of two prisons which diverged dramatically in terms of structure, freedom, and staff–inmate interaction style (boot camp versus traditional prison). The study was motivated, in part, by the state of Maryland’s asking whether the ‘extra’ cost of running an early release program at the boot camp rather than a traditional prison was justified. Cost–benefit tools were employed, not only because they addressed this specific question, but also because they provided a platform for describing differences both in the amount and the quality (harm) of recidivism associated with facility assignment. Two themes are emphasized in this paper. First, even without consideration of differences in post-release impact, the boot camp cost less to run per inmate. This may be an important observation for policy makers now wrestling with budget declines and potential cuts; they should not assume that programs which offer more services are necessarily more expensive to operate than alternatives offering less. Second, the boot camp generated substantially less recidivism-harm relative to the traditional prison. This finding held across numerous sensitivity analyses standard to the field, as well as new approaches presented here.     

How staff attitude and support for inmate treatment and rehabilitation differs by job category: An evaluation of findings from Pennsylvania's Department of Corrections' employee training curriculum ‘Reinforcing Positive Behavior’

In July 2006, the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections began delivering a training session titled Reinforcing Positive Behavior to all new employees. The training educated staff about the department's philosophy on inmate treatment programming and about staff responsibilities for reinforcing treatment concepts. Findings from a survey administered immediately after the training revealed that treatment and clerical staff strongly agreed that how they treat inmates and how they behave in a correctional facility impacts inmate rehabilitation efforts, and that reinforcing positive behavior among inmates was a requirement of their profession. Also, treatment and clerical staff, more so than correctional officers, recognized that staff support of treatment programs impacted inmate rehabilitation outcomes and that staff actions and interactions with other staff and inmates can make a correctional facility a more positive place.     

Recommendations for Correctional Leaders to Reduce Boundary Violations: Female Correctional Employees and Male Inmates

The correctional profession continues to report boundary-violating behavior by correctional employees with inmates, such as aiding an inmate in an escape and engaging in sexual contact with an inmate. These criminal behaviors obviously threaten the safety within the institutions and the community; however, these types of actions are normally preceded by minor boundary crossings within the institution. Therefore, all types of boundary violations and crossings between an inmate and an employee must be examined and eliminated. This article offers correctional leaders recommendations for organizational change that may reduce the number of boundary violations and crossings between female employees and male inmates. These recommendations are built on a larger qualitative study that used portraiture methodology, by interviewing 4 former female correctional employees who developed relationships with male inmates.     

Before the next storm: some evidence-based reminders about temporary release

This article offers a long overdue comprehensive review of the literature on the effectiveness of temporary release programs for prisoners. Following an account of how the public and criminal justice workers view temporary release, and against the "nothing works" proposition, it is shown that while in the community, prisoners tend to spend their time constructively and comply with the rules and regulations of temporary release; both home leave and work release schemes can be effective in reducing recidivism rates, and work release in particular may also enhance postrelease employment prospects.     

Student attitudes toward inmate privileges

Although corrections researchers have examined criminal justice students’ attitudes toward offender punishment and the death penalty, they have overlooked the important area of inmate privileges. Using data collected from 570 students enrolled at four different Southern universities, this study examines attitudinal differences between criminal justice and noncriminal justice majors in terms of providing inmates with psychological counseling, college education programs, television, cigarettes, weightlifting, and conjugal visits. No statistically significant attitudinal differences emerged between criminal justice and noncriminal justice majors.     

Community In‐Reach Through Jail Reentry: Findings from a Quasi‐Experimental Design

Offenders face a number of significant challenges upon reentry into the community, including securing employment, locating housing, and accessing adequate substance abuse and mental health treatment. These and related issues, if neglected, only bolster rising recidivism rates which have prompted renewed interest in rehabilitation initiatives such as inmate reentry. Many jurisdictions have implemented programs designed to improve offenders' success after prison, but jail reentry programs are far less common. This study examined the effectiveness of one such program, the Auglaize County (OH) Transition (ACT) Program. Using a quasiexperimental design, recidivism was measured a year after release to determine if participation in the ACT Program was predictive of successful reentry. Findings suggest that program participation is strongly related to outcome success as was criminal history. Implications for correctional policy and suggestions for additional jail reentry research are considered.     

Alienation and the correctional officer: A multivariate analysis

The increased pressures which have been placed upon correctional institutions in the 1980’s have made the retention of quality correctional officers imperative. Yet many of these officers find prison work to be an unsatisfying experience. This paper attempts to measure levels of alienation among correctional officers and identify factors which may be related to its occurrence. The amount of alienation experienced by 126 correctional officers at a Western state prison was measured utilizing Dean’s Alienation Scale. Alienation levels were found to be related primarily to institutional, and opposed to non-institutional, variables. The implications for correctional administration are discussed.     

Challenges to inmate classification in a developing country setting: implications for context-based inmate classification schemes

Inmate classification is a key aspect of prison management and inmate programming. It guides inmate housing assignment, level of supervision and control, and inmate programme placement. The Philippines formally incorporated these principles to modernise its prisons. However, structural, organisational, and cultural challenges posed barriers to successful implementation. Utilising qualitative data gathered through interviews and focus group discussions with prison personnel, inmates, and volunteers in a major prison in the Philippines, this paper investigates the practices that impact on inmate classification and how these affect housing assignment, levels of supervision and control, and inmate programming. Implications towards developing an integrated correctional management in the Philippines, and other similarly situated countries, are discussed.     

Administrative determinants of inmate violence: A multilevel analysis

This study examined the effect of remunerative and coercive controls on inmate assault, net of traditional controls. The sample included 4,168 male inmates nested within 185 state correctional facilities. The results suggest a complex relationship between remunerative controls and inmate assault. Remunerative controls were not significant predictors of inmate-on-inmate assault; however, prisoners involved in work programs were significantly less likely to assault staff, net of control variables. A significant relationship was not found between coercive control and inmate assault.     

Possible solutions for preventing inmate sexual Assault: Examining wardens’ beliefs

Inmate sexual assault has long been a problem within the American correctional system. Prison sex researchers have prescribed various remedies and solutions for dealing with this issue. However, few of these studies have examined wardens’ beliefs regarding possible remedies for inmate sexual assault. Using data collected from 226 wardens in 2001, this study examines the beliefs that wardens hold concerning the effectiveness of institutional policies and procedures, staff training, and increased supervision by staff on sexual assault among inmates. On average, wardens feel these possible solutions would reduce inmate sexual coercion. Multiple regression analyses reveal that race, education, percentage of inmates sexually assaulted and known by the warden, and percentage of inmates having consensual sex are statistically significant variables associated with these remedies. Support for this project was provided by a grant from the College of Justice and Safety, Eastern Kentucky University.     

The correctional orientation of community corrections: Legislative changes in the legally prescribed functions of community corrections 1992–2002

Over the years, the prevailing correctional orientation in the United States has shifted back and forth between punishment and rehabilitation. These changes in correctional ideology are typically marked by differing sentencing practices and changing criminal justice research agendas. On the other hand, how corrections is legally mandated to operate is less understood. In 1993, Johnson, Dunaway, Burton, Marquait, and Cuvelier assessed the legally prescribed functions of community corrections for all 50 states and classified them as either reform or control oriented functions. They concluded the majority of states were primarily reform oriented. In this study, we replicate Johnson et al.’s (1993) methods using the statutes from all 50 states in 2002. However, we classified our findings, as well as recoded Johnson et al.’s (1993) findings, into punishment or rehabilitation functions. We make comparisons between 1992 and 2002 for the purpose of assessing where legally mandated orientation of community corrections stands today on the punishment/rehabilitation debate.     

Comparing inmate perceptions of two residential substance abuse treatment programs

Drug and alcohol abuse by criminal offenders remains at an all time high. Residential substance abuse and treatment (RSAT) programs were developed to address the drug and alcohol treatment needs of inmates in prisons. Typically, such programs range in length from 6 to 12 months, have an Alcoholics Anonymous and/or Narcotics Anonymous component, and occur in a therapeutic community environment. Some programs also include a cognitive self-change component. Inmate participation in their programming is crucial to the success of a therapeutic community treatment environment, yet there is little research on the perceptions of RSAT inmates regarding their programming. In this research, the authors describe, compare, and contrast the perceptions of inmate clients of two RSAT programs in a rural mountain state.     

Violence in Juvenile Institutions

This study assesses the impact of selected deprivation and importation variables on inmate violence in four juvenile correctional institutions. While both sets of variables were shown to exert independent effects on inmate aggression, variations in the institutional context mediated the impact of inmate characteristics on levels of p r i s m violence. Preinstitutional violence emerged as the best predictor of inmate aggression, regardless of institutional setting. Race was shown to affect inmate violence directly m l y in the most treatment-oriented facility, while the inmate code was found to exert effects only in the most custodial institution.     

The Meaning of the Cut: A Phenomenological Inquiry into Prisoner Self-injury

Self-injurious behaviors (SIBs) represent a significant threat to the morbidity and mortality of vulnerable prisoners, and are now a ubiquitous aspect of the correctional system. Currently, correctional staff receive little specific training or appropriate guidance from national standards to respond to this dangerous behavior. To date, the overwhelming majority of empirical research on self-injury in prison has relied upon the viewpoint of academicians and/or correctional staff. This select viewpoint has reduced the perspective of the self-injuring prisoner to a passive role. In response, we utilized a qualitative methodology to access the perspectives of 20 highly recidivistic self-injuring inmates housed in three South Carolina prison. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was employed to identify fundamental themes underlying SIBs. Findings indicate that the meaning of self-injury is rooted in traumatic family milieus with the behavior becoming a fixed coping mechanism over time. Respondents perceived stress and control as dominant themes, though mental illness, physiological responses, and negative emotional states were also important. While desistance from self-injury appears unlikely, key policy solutions are presented in accordance with these inmate perspectives. This phenomenological inquiry suggests that efforts to understand these inmate “accounts” and personal history serve as a potentially efficacious means of understanding SIBs occurring in prison.     

An instructional aid for courses in corrections: The correctional institutions environment scale

This paper describes the use of Moos’ (1974) Correctional Institutions Environment Scale (CIES) as a supplemental instructional technique in criminal justice courses on corrections. Utilization of the CIES (Form I) provides students with feedback on their values and goal orientations toward correctional programs, and provides a means to organize class discussions on correctional environments. Sample CIES profiles of students are presented, and various instructional uses are delineated.     

Rehabilitation in the Punitive Era: The Gap Between Rhetoric and Reality in U.S. Prison Programs

Scholars of mass incarceration point to the 1970s as a pivotal turning point in U.S. penal history, marked by a shift toward more punitive policies and a consensus that “nothing works” in rehabilitating inmates. However, while there has been extensive research on changes in policy makers' rhetoric, sentencing policy, and incarceration rates, scholars know very little about changes in the actual practices of punishment and prisoner rehabilitation. Using nationally representative data for U.S. state prisons, this article demonstrates that there were no major changes in investments in specialized facilities, funding for inmate services–related staff, or program participation rates throughout the late 1970s and the 1980s. Not until the 1990s, more than a decade after the start of the punitive era, did patterns of inmate services change, as investments in programming switched from academic to reentry‐related programs. These findings suggest that there is a large gap between rhetoric and reality in the case of inmate services and that since the 1990s, inmate “rehabilitation” has increasingly become equated with reentry‐related life skills programs.     

The Case of Weak Will and Wayward Desire

In this article, I confront Garvey’s argument that a weak-willed individual deserves partial excuse for trying to resist a strong desire that pushes him toward commission of a criminal act even though in the end he unreasonably abandons his resistance and commits the crime. I attempt to refute Garvey’s argument on two counts: one, I question whether the law should indeed provide mitigation to such an offender; and two, I argue that, even if it should, this mitigation may not come in the form of a partial defense. Defenses, even partial, are desert based, and there is nothing in Garvey’s offender’s circumstances that makes him less blameworthy for the crime he committed. A court may choose to treat such an offender more leniently but it should not be mandated to do so.