Dispositional explanations of institutional aggression

Question 1

institutions

Answer 1

Institutions are places where many people are often confined in cramped surroundings and as a result can become involved in violence and aggression

Question 2

dispositional explanation

Answer 2

the individuals disposition, the traits and characteristics that together create an individual’s identity, are the main factors in any aggression displayed by that individual

Question 3

importation model

Answer 3

• This model proposes that individuals import their characteristics and traits into the prison, when they enter the prison
• if an individual comes from a subculture where violence is the norm, then they will continue to be violent in the prison
• Criminals often live in a culture of violence, where the norm is to use violence to settle disputes and this norm continues to determine their behaviour both inside and outside of prison

Question 4

study

Answer 4

• Often it is the younger inmates that tend to behave violently
• as they are more likely to find it harder to adjust to prison life
  = may therefore engage in more conflicts with others
• are more likely to view aggression as an appropriate way of dealing with conflict
• studied a group of juvenile offenders in Californian institutions
• had negative backgrounds (e.g. childhood trauma, anger, histories of substance abuse and violent behaviour)
• These individuals were importing these characteristics and the resulting dispositions into prison
• The researchers compared this group with a control group of inmates who did not have these negative features
• The findings of this study showed that the ‘negative’ inmates were more likely to engage in suicidal activity, physical acts of aggression etc..
  = supports the dispositional explanation

Question 5

gang membership

Answer 5

• consistently related to violence and other forms of anti-social behaviour
• For example in a study by Drury and DeLisi (2011), they found that individuals who had been members of gangs prior to imprisonment
• were significantly more likely to commit various types of misconduct in prison, including murder, hostage taking and assault with a deadly weapon

Question 6

ads

Answer 6

• black inmates
• low vs high security

Question 7

black inmates - ads

Answer 7

• found that in American prisons, black inmate were more likely to be associated w/ violent acts in comparison to white inmates
• argument is that black prisoners tended to come from poorer backgrounds w/ higher rates of crime
  = imported cultural norms into prison
  = supporting dispositional explanation

Question 8

low vs high security - ads

Answer 8

• supported by study
• studied 561 male inmates w/ similar criminal histories + predispositions to aggression
• half randomly placed in low security prisons
• half randomly placed in high-security prisons
• findings showed that there was only 3% difference between prisons
  = in terms of no. of aggressive acts by prisoners
• researchers concluded that features of prison environment are less important predictors than characteristics of inmates
• supports the dispositional explanation

Question 9

disads

Answer 9

• ACM
• gender bias

Question 10

ACM - disads

Answer 10

• weakness of the importation model = ignores other key factors in explaining aggression in prisons
• e.g. psych claims that importation model ignores other factors e.g. the way the prison is run
• instead proposed administrative control model (ACM)
  = states that poorly managed prisons are more likely to have inmate violence

Question 11

gender bias - disads

Answer 11

• most of the research has been undertake. on male prisoners
  = very liitle known about reaosns for female violence in prisons
• androcentric to resume the same reasons for male violence
• there may be other factprs involved in female aggression
  = reserach exhibits beta bias
• may be that males import aggressiosn into the prison enviornment
  = but may be gender differences to the extent that dispositional factors affect each gender