Institutional Aggression Flashcards
Outline the deprivation model (situational explanation)
- Institutional aggression is the product of the stressful and oppressive conditions of the prison
- In response to these conditions, inmates may act more aggressively
Describe specific deprivations in the deprivation model
- Sykes describes the deprivations that inmates experiences in prison which may be linked to increases violence as: loss of liberty, loss of autonomy, loss of security
- This means institutional aggression is influences solely by prison-specific variables
How may prisoners cope with the specific deprivations?
- Some may withdraw through seclusions in their cell
- Others may rebel with violence against staff or other prisoners
Outline the prison characteristics that increase aggression in the deprivation model
Cooke et al claims that these are:
- Overcrowding (high prison population density)
- Heat and noise (high temperatures and noise increase the effects of overcrowding and predispose prisoners to violence)
- Job burnout (prison staff may be psychologically worn out from their job and may not care about the people with whom they work, leading to the deterioration in relationships with inmates, increasing violence)
Outline the importation model (dispositional explanation)
- Irwin and Cressey claims that inmates brin with them in prisons their violent pasts and draw on their experiences, where toughness and physical exploitation are important survival skills
- Prisoners aren’t ‘blank slates’ when they enter prisons
What is the ‘code of the streets’ in the importation model?
- In many culture, street culture (‘code of the streets’) is a set of informal rules governing interpersonal public behaviour, including violence
- At the heart of this code is the issue of respect. The ‘code of the streets’ defines how some may behave in prison, especially when this code relates to gang membership
Describe a study that supports gang membership as increasing aggression in the importation model
- Drury and DeLisi studies over 1,000 inmates in prisons in the South-West of the US.
- They found those who had been members of gang prior to prison were more likely to commit misconduct in prison
Describe the other dispositional characteristics in the importation model
- Anger, anti-social personality, impulsivity
- Low self-control, tendency to lose one’s tempers easily
Give evaluation for the importation model (supporting evidence)
- Mears et al tested that inmate behaviour stems partly from the cultural beliefs systems that they import into prison. They measured the ‘code of the street’ belief system and the prison experiences of inmates.
- They found that a ‘code of the street’ belief systems affects inmate violence, especially in those who lacked family support and were involved in gangs prior to prisons.
- They concluded that the ‘code of the streets’ doesn’t directly cause violent behaviour, but it calls for proactive responses to perceived insults. In a prison setting this is likely to involve violence as a way of commanding respect.
- This suggests that values that prisoners hold outside are imported into prison, increasing risk of aggression, supporting the importation model.
Give evaluation for the importation model (research challenges the importation model)
- DeLisi et al found that inmates with prior gang involvement were no more likely than other inmates to engage in prison violence. Neither street gang nor prison membership significantly impact involvement in prison violence
- This suggests that, contrary to the importation model, attitudes and behaviours associated with gang membership that are imported into prison doesn’t increase aggression levels
Give evaluation for the deprivation model (supporting evidence)
- McCorke et al studied US prisons and found that situational factors such as overcrowding and lack of privacy, significantly influenced inmate-on-inmate and inmate-on-staff assaults.
- Prisons where a major % of the prison population involved itself in educational programmes had a lower level of violence against staff and inmate
- This suggests that depriving inmates of meaningful activity increases the likelihood of violent behaviour, as predicted by the deprivation model
Give evaluation for the deprivation model (support from real-world applications)
- Prison Governor David Wilson reasoned that if most violence occurs in environments that are hot, noisy and overcrowded then this could be avoided by reducing these 3 factors.
- Wilson set up 2 units for violent prisoners that were less claustrophic and ‘prison-like’ and gave a view to outside. Noise was reduced and masked by music from a radio. Temperature was lowered so that it wasn’t hot.
- These changes virtually eradicated assaults on prison staff and inmates, providing powerful support for the claim that situational variables are the main cause of prison violence.
