A growing body of literature explores how participation in programming in correctional institutions predicts inmate misconduct. Theory and extant research suggest that engagement in structured and ...prosocial activities promotes positive behavioral and emotional outcomes, while idleness has a negative impact on inmate behavior and well-being. However, the literature that examines these relationships is largely based on qualitative methodology, small samples, and prison population. Using data from the 2002 Survey of Inmates in Local Jails, this study fills the gap in the literature by examining the associations between engagement in various activities in jail and inmate misconduct. This study also explores individual and jail-level factors that predict inmate engagement in different activities in jails. The results show that watching TV and working in jail are associated with lower misconduct, whereas recreation and reading are associated with higher levels of several types of misconduct. The data also reveal that certain personal and institution-level factors predict the extent of engagement in formal and leisure activities.
Sentencing research suggests that offenders who are more physically attractive are more likely to experience leniency in verdict and sentencing. Additionally, there is evidence that other extralegal ...factors, such as race, influence public and juror opinions on criminality and the appropriate punishment of criminal defendants. Much research on attractiveness, however, has not focused on female offenders or does not explore death penalty opinions. Using a student sample and an online survey with factorial vignettes, this study seeks to examine the likelihood of endorsing the death penalty for a hypothetical female offender relative to her physical attractiveness and race. Results show that attractiveness of the offender did not affect the likelihood of the respondent selecting the death penalty. The race of the offender and victim did affect the likelihood of the respondent selecting the death sentence, with respondents less likely to select the death penalty for African American offenders than white offenders, more likely to select the death penalty in vignettes with African American victims than white victims.
Although prior investigations have not been designed to assess the issue directly and thoroughly, criminal justice research suggests that the American public supports penal policies that they believe ...provide utility. The public simultaneously endorses rehabilitation and punishment when they are convinced that these approaches promote general utilitarian penal goals, such as enhancing public safety. It is unclear, however, how other practical aspects of penal policies influence people’s opinions about punitive and rehabilitative prison conditions. Using a randomized experimental design, we explicitly estimate the extent to which public support for punitive and rehabilitative prison policies depends on pragmatic considerations of financial cost, ease of institutional management, and recidivism risk. Our results reveal considerable endorsement for offering rehabilitation to a hypothetical offender as well as expanding the use of such programs to other inmates. We also find less enthusiastic support for austere prison conditions. Public endorsement of both proposals showed evidence of pragmatism, though practical considerations had larger and more consistent effects on opinions about rehabilitation.
While literature suggests that parenting has direct and indirect effects on gang membership, mediating effects have been established for the relationship between unidimensional parenting variables ...and gang involvement. This study fills the gap in the literature by examining how multidimensional parenting styles affect gang membership, and which factors mediate this relationship. The logistic regression models indicate a negative relationship between authoritative parenting and gang involvement, and a positive relationship between authoritarian, neglectful, and permissive parenting and gang membership. The analyses show that delinquent peers, self-control, rationalizations, and guilt are complete or partial mediators of parenting styles and gang membership.
The literature suggests that individual characteristics of offenders are related to cognitive patterns before their release from prison. Empirical evidence shows that such cognitions can influence ...the extent to which offenders take an active role in rehabilitation. Given that many studies upon which these conclusions are made are dated, qualitative, or use bivariate analyses, it is unclear how salient, strong, and significant these associations are. Therefore, the aim of this exploratory study is to identify the factors that are associated with two prelease cognitions, future orientation and readiness for release, and to investigate whether future orientation is associated with greater involvement in structured activities. This study uses survey data collected from a sample of 503 people incarcerated in medium-security prisons in South Carolina in the United States. Ordered logistic regression models reveal that idleness, marital status, and drug dependence are associated with future orientation, while idleness, engagement in work and education, age, marital status, sentence phase, and mental health issues are related to readiness for release. Negative binomial regression shows that future orientation is associated with more extensive involvement in structured activities. Overall, the study concludes that while inmates are generally future-oriented, they are less confident that they are prepared for release from prison. The limitations of this study, including low scale reliabilities for key variables and a substantial amount of missing data, are also discussed.
•Substantial responsibility is placed on parents for dealing with juvenile offenders.•The responsibility attributed to parents outstrips other social institutions.•Support for parental responsibility ...does not equate to a strong desire for punishment.•Providing parental education is considered more important than punishing parents.•Views on parental responsibility are influenced by the age of the juvenile.
Previous research indicates that people ascribe less responsibility to juvenile offenders than adult offenders for the crimes they have committed. Although assignment of responsibility to parents varies depending upon the youth’s age, we know little about the role of other factors. The current study used randomized factorial vignettes to examine whether the seriousness of the offense, peer involvement, and the offender's race, age, sex, and prior record influence support for parental responsibility. We found that participants in our study placed substantial responsibility on parents for dealing with juvenile offenders; however, support for punishing the parents was low, while the importance attached to enrolling parents in training was high. Views on parental responsibility were influenced by the age of the juvenile and the seriousness of the offense. The implications of these findings and how they fit in with previous work are discussed.
Minority threat theory and existing research show that public attitudes towards certain types of offenders (e.g. ethnic and racial minorities) are often more punitive. Research also reveals that a ...significant proportion of the public associates the increase of immigration with higher crime rates. Negative attitudes, as well as an overall anti-immigration sentiment, have been increasing internationally. Therefore, we hypothesise that the public will have more negative and punitive attitudes towards immigrant offenders than towards citizens. Using a sample of students from the University of Zagreb, this research tested the above-mentioned hypothesis and explored whether factors like immigration status, ethnic identity, type of offense, and the age of the hypothetical offender impact student attitude on immigrant crime. To test this proposition, we used online surveys with factorial vignettes. The results show that participants ask for harsher sentences for undocumented immigrants, but immigrant status and the national origin of the immigrant are not associated with the perception of recidivism, dangerousness, or criminal typicality of offender.
Minority threat theory and existing research show that public attitudes towards certain types of offenders (e.g. ethnic and racial minorities) are often more punitive. Research also reveals that a ...significant proportion of the public associates the increase of immigration with higher crime rates. Negative attitudes, as well as an overall anti-immigration sentiment, have been increasing internationally. Therefore, we hypothesise that the public will have more negative and punitive attitudes towards immigrant offenders than towards citizens. Using a sample of students from the University of Zagreb, this research tested the above-mentioned hypothesis and explored whether factors like immigration status, ethnic identity, type of offense, and the age of the hypothetical offender impact student attitude on immigrant crime. To test this proposition, we used online surveys with factorial vignettes. The results show that participants ask for harsher sentences for undocumented immigrants, but immigrant status and the national origin of the immigrant are not associated with the perception of recidivism, dangerousness, or criminal typicality of offender.
Prior research has established the public recognizes the obstacles former prisoners’ face upon release from prison, and they support various offender reentry services. Still, we do not have a solid ...understanding of what affects public opinion on prisoner reentry nor is it clear that support for policies also extends to individuals’ willingness to engage with ex-offenders on a personal level. Drawing on a random sample of South Carolina residents, the current study examines the extent to which citizens’ belief in offenders’ redeemability influences their support for reentry initiatives at a policy and personal level. The results of this study show support for several types of reentry services, reveal that policy-level opinions and personal-level acceptance depend on the type of services, and demonstrate that belief in the redeemability of offenders is an important predictor of the degree to which the public embraces reentry programming.
Qualitative studies about prison culture and examinations of correctional recreation and programming offer a comprehensive understanding of prisons’ social dynamics, including how individuals spend ...their free time while incarcerated. Theoretical models and the extant research suggest that involvement in structured and prosocial activities is associated with positive behavioral and emotional outcomes in offenders. However, the majority of studies that provide the empirical evidence for these conclusions do not examine all aspects of time utilization explicitly or do not provide statistical evidence of the strength and significance of the associations. Additionally, many of these investigations are dated. To address these gaps, this study uses quantitative data to examine the relationship between inmates’ subjective perception of using time in prison constructively and objective evaluation of participation in activities and emotional well-being in contemporary correctional institutions in the United States. Specifically, this study aims to determine how inmates experience their time in prison, what activities they engage in, and what motivates their involvement. In addition, this study explores how inmate time use is associated with depression and anxiety using the stress-coping model developed by Richard Lazarus (1966; Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). This research was conducted with 503 randomly selected adult male inmates housed in five medium security correctional institutions under the supervision of the South Carolina Department of Corrections. Data were collected at a single time-point using self-administered questionnaires. The results show that many inmates are idle and a large portion of time in prison is spent in unstructured leisure activities. Idleness was associated with higher levels of depression and anxiety. However, greater participation in structured activities was not associated with more positive emotional outcomes. Furthermore, the findings demonstrate that different activities have different functions of coping with stress and that personal characteristics are associated with the type of coping inmates adopted. Finally, many inmates are concerned with spending their time in activities for self-improvement; however, many still employ passive techniques such as escaping reality in their daily routines. Implications for policy makers and prison administrators are discussed.
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