AO3

• Limitation: Psychological Effects

  • Bartol (1995): Many offenders, prison = 'brutal, demeaning and generally devasting'
  • Ministry of Justice - 119 people killed themselves in prison in England and Wales in 2016, up from 29 the previous year
  • Equating to a suicide every 3 days
  • Most at risk = single men during first 24 hours of confinement
  • Prison Reform Trust: 25% of women and 15% of men = reported symptoms of psychosis
  • Prison regimes may be detrimental to psychological health
• Counterpoint: Psychological Effects

  • The prison reform study do not include number of inmates which were experiencing psychosis symptoms before entering prison
  • Many may have been experiencing psychological and emotional difficulties anyway (explaining their behaviour???)
  • Importation model argues prisoners may import some of their psychological problems so we do not know if this is a problem with the prison regime or something else - trauma of being locked away
  • Suggests there may be confounding variables which influence the link between prison and its psychological effects
• Strength: Training and treatment

  • One of the objectives = rehab - offenders may become better people during their time in prison
  • This improved character means the may be able to live a crime-free life and back in society
  • Many offenders access education and training in prison increasing the possibility of getting a job after release
  • Shirley: offenders which take part in college education programmes are 43% less likely to reoffend
  • The prisons which offer these programmes also report less violence
  • Suggesting prison may be worthwhile assuming prisoners have access to these programmes
• Limitation: School for Crime

  • Alongside legitimate skills offenders may learn through programmes
  • Offenders may share tips between each other for offending behaviour, long-term offenders may give advice to younger prisoners
  • This also creates a network for the offender creating contacts whilst in prison that they may follow up after they are released
  • This dubious form of 'education' may undermine attempts to rehabilitate prisoners and make reoffending more likely