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Limited existing evidence and health provider perceptions suggest that prevalence of obesity among incarcerated people residing in U.S. correctional institutions is high. Evaluating evidence of obesity and weight change during incarceration will allow for the determination of whether people are subject to weight gain during incarceration. A systematic review of three online databases, gray literature, and reference lists of articles of interest was conducted using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) checklist. A meta-analysis to obtain pooled prevalence estimates of obesity among U.S. incarcerated people was then completed. A total of 11 studies met our inclusion criteria. Results show the estimated pooled prevalence of obesity in incarcerated men (30.0%) was less than the national average. The estimated pooled prevalence of obesity in females (39.8%) was similar to the national average.

Research into opportunities for prevention including health promotion information about alcohol and other drugs (AoD) harms for people who go to prison is sparce. This is despite there being ample research reporting how much and how frequently AoD have been used by people who go to prison. This article describes results from a qualitative thematic analysis of interviews with 31 men in a Sydney prison, about where they first received health promotion information about AoD-related harms and their first-ever treatment episode. No participant reported receiving education on AoD harms or treatment support services in primary school or high school. Only one participant received their first treatment episode through a health service (in his case from a doctor) and none reported being screened for AoD use at a health service. Almost all (n = 27) participants had their first session with a trained AoD professional through the criminal justice system. Pro-active screening in health services for AoD use disorders and referral to appropriate health services is needed., (© 2022 The Authors. Health Promotion Journal of Australia published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australian Health Promotion Association.)

The effect of incarceration on sepsis outcomes in the United States is infrequently described in the literature. This study sought to investigate whether being incarcerated affected mortality rates in sepsis. The retrospective study used data from October 1, 2013, to November 30, 2016, of patients admitted with a diagnosis of sepsis at a tertiary care center with a primary outcome of in-hospital mortality. The study cohort included 8,568 cases of sepsis, of which 8,448 were noninmates and 120 were inmates. Overall mortality was 15.7%; for noninmates, the rate was 15.3%, and for inmates, 42.5%. The risk of death among inmates was 2.8 times that of noninmates. Neither age, sex, nor race were significant confounders. Findings suggest a direct association between incarceration and sepsis mortality. Larger regional or nationwide case-control studies should be conducted to confirm these findings.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is highly prevalent in incarcerated populations. The high cost of HCV therapy places a major burden on correctional system healthcare budgets, but the burden of untreated HCV is not known. We investigated the economic impact of HCV through comparison of length of stay (LOS), frequency of 30-day readmission, and costs of hospitalizations in inmates with and without HCV using a 2004-2014 administrative claims database. Inmates with HCV had longer LOS, higher frequency of 30-day readmission, and increased cost of hospitalizations. Costs were higher in inmates with HCV even without advanced liver disease and in inmates with HIV/HCV compared to HCV alone. We conclude that although HCV treatment may not avert all of the observed increases in hospitalization, modest reductions in hospital utilization with HCV cure could help offset treatment costs. Policy discussions on HCV treatment in corrections should be informed by the costs of untreated HCV infection.

Inmates remain a vulnerable group at elevated risk for suicide, especially in light of stresses associated with incarceration. Despite the elevated risk for inmates, suicide prevention practices in corrections remain tenuous at best. The present article reviews literature on risk and protective factors for suicide among inmates as well as current recommended best practices. It then provides directions for suicide prevention provision, training, and research in correctional settings. These include adaptations for security staff of current empirically supported models of suicide risk training and intervention.

Transgender inmates provide a conundrum for correctional staff, particularly when it comes to classification, victimization, and medical and health issues. Using LexisNexis and WestLaw and state Department of Corrections (DOC) information, we collected state statutes and DOC policies concerning transgender inmates. We utilized academic legal research with content analysis to determine whether a statute or policy addressed issues concerning classification procedures, access to counseling services, the initiation and continuation of hormone therapy, and sex reassignment surgery. We found that while more states are providing either statutory or policy guidelines for transgender inmates, a number of states are lagging behind and there is a shortage of guidance dealing with the medical issues related to being transgender.

Security designation tools are a key feature of all prisons in the United States, intended as objective measures of risk that funnel inmates into security levels-to prison environments varying in degree of intrusiveness, restriction, dangerousness, and cost. These tools are mostly (if not all) validated by measuring inmates on a set of characteristics, using scores from summations of that information to assign inmates to prisons of varying security level, and then observing whether inmates assumed more risky did in fact offend more. That approach leaves open the possibility of endogeneity--that the harsher prisons are themselves bringing about higher misconduct and thus biasing coefficients assessing individual risk. The current study assesses this potential bias by following an entry cohort of inmates to more than 100 facilities in the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and exploiting the substantial variation in classification scores within a given prison that derive from systematic overrides of security-level designations for reasons not associated with risk of misconduct. By estimating pooled models of misconduct along with prison-fixed effects specifications, the data show that a portion of the predictive accuracy thought associated with the risk-designation tool used in BOP was a function of facility-level contamination (endogeneity).

In Peru, the excessive increase in the prison population turns out to be one of the most complex problems faced by the State in the framework of its prison policies. The purpose of this research is to determine the factors that have influenced the increase in the prison population in Peru between 2007 and 2022. The methodology used is explanatory with a mixed approach, divided into two stages: first, literature review with qualitative analysis and a second stage of empirical analysis with a quantitative, descriptive and cross-sectional approach. The main result was the trend of increase in the prison population in Peru in the last fifteen years. At the conclusion level, it has been possible to determine that the most influential factors in the increase in the penitentiary population in Peru between the years 2007 and 2022 are the high rate difference between the admissions and discharges of inmates to penal establishments, the disproportionate increase in sentences that generate a longer stay in penitentiary establishments, the prohibition of extramural penitentiary benefits and the excessive use of preventive detention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the European Union, the rights of persons deprived of their liberty in prisons are regulated by a combination of European legislation and the national laws of each Member State. Although there are efforts to harmonise legislation between EU Member States, including in the field of justice and human rights, there is still no specific institution of the 'prison lawyer' operating on the basis of common principles in all Member States. In some European countries, there are national institutions or bodies responsible for supervising the compliance with the rights of persons deprived of their liberty, but their name and structure may vary from one country to another. As regards the prospect of developing in the future an institution of "prison advocate" at EU level, based on common principles agreed by all EU Member States, this could be a long-term objective for the European Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The plea of accused persons, whether guilty or not, forms a central part of the legal process. Such a decision must exclusively rest with the accused person and be devoid of judicial and extrajudicial influence. This study seeks to interrogate the contexts within which accused persons determine their plea in court. It is argued that all the forms of plea are employed by accused persons as a means of navigating the sentencing outcomes of their cases. The study used a mixed-methods approach to data gathering and analysis. The respondents explained their guilty plea within the context of leniency, the expedition of cases, and to avoid prison remand. Those who pleaded not guilty largely thought of it within the context of identifying a legal loophole and having the opportunity to appeal their sentence after conviction. The extent to which the police influenced the accused to plead guilty requires further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista del Museo de Antropología is the property of Museo de Antropologia - IDACOR and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The objective of this study was to evaluate, in a group of Galician inmates, if there were variations in the levels of physical and mental health and anxiety–depressive symptomatology, depending on the sports' practice performed. The relationship between these constructs was also investigated. The sample was composed of 509 people deprived of liberty in prisons in the Autonomous Community of Galicia, Spain. A quantitative methodology was used, with the questionnaire as an information collection instrument, Student's t-tests, Pearson's correlation analysis and a stepwise regression analysis were carried out. The results indicated that those who performed physical activity during their stay in prison had higher levels of physical and mental health, as well as lower indicators of anxiety–depressive symptoms. People who did not practice sports showed a decrease in their perceived health levels when compared to those perceived in their pre-prison stage. A negative association was shown between perceived health levels and anxiety–depressive symptomatology. Perceived physical health, alone, explained 35% of the variance in perceived mental health. These results add to knowledge about the relationships between perceived health, anxiety–depressive symptoms and sports practice in the group of people deprived of liberty, highlighting the importance of promoting physical activity in penitentiary institutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using paper surveys, we investigated sexual behaviors and desires of 181 inmates in a Finnish prison. Conjugal visits, sexual desire, and gender were the strongest predictors of sexual activity. Reports of coercive experiences were somewhat less prevalent than reported in international studies. Compared with population-based data, inmates reported fewer partnered behaviors, although their desires for these activities were similar. The masturbation frequency did not differ between the two populations; men generally masturbated more than they desired. Male prisoners who reported more masturbation also reported lower well-being. These results can be used to guide prisoners and staff on topics relevant to prisoner sexuality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: From 85348 inmates in England and Wales, over 26,000 incidents of assault and 40,000 of self-harm were reported from within prisons in 2016. This study focuses primarily on burn injuries in prison, determining the predominant aetiology as well as clinical outcomes of these injuries.Methods: Data was retrieved retrospectively and a case series performed, including all burns referred from regional prisons to our centre from 2007 to 2017 and comprising patient demographics, mechanism of injury, total body surface area affected, management, and outcome. Cost analysis of care was conducted using a previously published framework.Results: 18 cases from three regional prisons were recorded, with 67% from a single prison. Referrals rose exponentially over time, with 44% occurring in 2017. 94% were scald burns, and 56% secondary to assault, primarily through the use of kettles and mostly targeting the face and trunk. The mean TBSA of burn was 2.89% (<1-8%), and 80% received first aid. 72.2% were admitted to hospital for an average of 4 days. All burns were managed nonoperatively with dressings and underwent on average 2 outpatient reviews (1-8).Discussion: The disproportionate spread of referrals across the prisons correlates partly with the respective populations, but may also represent contrasting medical provisions. The recurring method of assault reflects the relative ease of access to hot water as a harmful agent, predominantly presenting with scalds affecting more critical areas, and with concurrent physical trauma in nearly half of cases which presents management challenges.Conclusion: Targeted education is recommended to reduce the incidence and ensure adequate management of burns in prison, referrals for which are demonstrably rising. Accordingly, the Burns Outreach team can provide training to in-house prison health staff and review referrals to specialist Burns services, aiming to ensure equitable care while alleviating costs associated with transfer to and management in hospital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In Brazil, despite the current legislation guaranteeing the health care of Persons Deprived of Liberty, the prison scenario is considered a public health issue. Objective: To understand the challenges to guarantee integrality in the context of the National Comprehensive Healthcare Policy for People Deprived of Liberty in the Prison System. Method: A qualitative study was carried out with 75 persons deprived of their liberty who were serving sentences in prisons in the state of Paraíba. The collection took place through a sociodemographic questionnaire and semi-structured interview. Content Analysis was carried out. Results: The participants were mostly young, from the State of Paraíba, married, Catholics, with an average of one to three children, received visits from family members, with incomplete elementary education, family income below one minimum wage, were in a closed regime and were repeat offenders. After the analysis of the statements, the categories were conformed: Healthcare and Physical structure. Conclusion: The challenges to guarantee comprehensive care in the PLP in the Brazilian context refers to the structural deficiencies of public health policies, accentuated in the prison context by the disarticulation between the health and justice work process, as well as the formative fragility of the actors involved in assisting this clientele. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Civitas Hominibus is the property of Akademii Humanistyczno-Ekonomicznej and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Civitas Hominibus is the property of Akademii Humanistyczno-Ekonomicznej and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Prisons are considered as major reservoirs for tuberculosis. Preventive therapy for latent TB infection (LTBI) is an adjunctive strategy to control TB. However, LTBI data in Thai prisoners is limited. This study assessed the prevalence of LTBI and feasibility of isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT).Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among prisoners in Klong Prem Central Prison, Bangkok. Participants were screened for active TB by questionnaire and chest X-ray. LTBI was evaluated by Tuberculin skin test (TST) and QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus (QFTP) among subgroup. Participants with positive TST or QFTP were considered to have LTBI. Participants with LTBI were offered IPT.Results: From August 2018-November 2019, 1002 participants were analyzed. All participants were male with a median age of 38 (IQR 32-50) years. LTBI identified by either TST/QFTP was present in 466 (46.5%) participants. TST was positive in 359 (36%) participants. In the subgroup of 294 participants who had both TST and QFTP results, 181/294 (61.6%) tested positive by QFTP. Agreement between TST and QFTP was 55.1% (Kappa = 0.17). The risk factors associated with LTBI were previous incarceration (aOR 1.53, 95%CI, 1.16-2.01, p = 0.002), history of prior active TB (aOR 3.02, 95%CI, 1.74-5.24, p < 0.001) and duration of incarceration ≥10 years (aOR 1.86, 95%CI, 1.24-2.79, p = 0.003). Majority of LTBI participants (82%) agreed to take IPT. Three hundred and 56 (93%) participants completed treatment whereas 27 (7%) participants discontinued IPT due to the side effects of INH.Conclusion: This is the first study to evaluate the prevalence of LTBI and feasibility of IPT among Thai prisoners. LTBI prevalence in male prisoners in Thailand is high. LTBI screening and treatment should be implemented together with other preventive components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Approximately 1.5 million persons are incarcerated in American prisons (Carson, 2020), and the rate at which persons who have been incarcerated reoffend (recidivism) is high (Alper et al., 2018, p. 1). This has propelled the effort to help offenders change their trajectory. Rehabilitative programs are used to help prisoners gain skills and strengths necessary to succeed in the community after their release. Yet, these high recidivism rates persist. Why do some prisoners not benefit from these programs? Although many researchers have studied the efficacy of programs over the past six decades, less attention has been directed towards access to prison programming. Additionally, studies that explore prisoners' perspectives are not common. This researcher sought to understand programming access and utilization through the prisoner's lens. This phenomenological, qualitative study explored 49 male prisoners' perspectives. The findings suggest the prison's operational structure impeded program access and the study's participants who experienced blocked access were negatively affected, not receiving needed rehabilitative programming and, separately, suffering from the act of disenfranchisement from services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world. Incarceration can increase HIV risk behaviors for individuals involved with the criminal justice system and may be a driver of HIV acquisition within the community. Methods We used an agent-based model to simulate HIV transmission in a sexual-contact network representing heterosexual African American men and women in Philadelphia to identify factors influencing the impact of male mass incarceration on HIV acquisition in women. The model was calibrated using surveillance data and assumed incarceration increased the number of sexual contacts and decreased HIV care engagement for men post-release. Incarceration of a partner increased the number of sexual contacts for women. We compared a counterfactual scenario with no incarceration to scenarios varying key parameters to determine what factors drove HIV acquisition in women. Results Setting the duration of male high-risk sexual behavior to two years post-release increased the number of HIV transmissions to women by more than 20%. Decreasing post-release HIV care engagement and increasing HIV acquisition risk attributable to sexually transmitted infections (STIs) also increased the number of HIV transmissions to women. Changing the duration of risk behavior for women, the proportion of women engaging in higher risk behavior, and the relative risk of incarceration for HIV-infected men had minimal impact. Conclusion The mass incarceration of African American men can increase HIV acquisition in African American women on a population-level through factors including post-release high-risk behaviors, disruption of HIV care engagement among formerly incarcerated men, and increased STI prevalence. These findings suggest that the most influential points of intervention may be programs seeking to reduce male risk behaviors and promote HIV care engagement post-release, as well as STI testing and treatment programs for recently incarcerated men, as well as women with incarcerated partners.

Prison is generally known as the place where the inmate is not only confined but also trained with several skills. In Malang, there are two prisons which divided by gender. The female prison is located in Sukun and currently holds 600 inmates. Living in prison does not prevent the inmate from exploring their creativity. The female prison provides 13 skills for inmates to learn, such as knitting, and making souvenirs like wallets, bags, and hats. However, there are other skills which not found and provided in the prison, specifically skills in making batik. Though many inmates are interested in learning on how to make batik, they face several problems ranging from the lack of knowledge to the limited materials. This gives rise to a concern because the correct training in making batik could potentially stimulate behavioural and character improvements. Therefore, this research is intended to: (1) teach inmates to create batik products and (2) see if this helps with character improvement. This qualitative research is applied to 30 female inmates called Class II A. The process of gathering data are observation, interview and documentation. This study demonstrates that the correct training in making batik consists of three stages - Planning, Executing, and Evaluating. The planning stage is verbal not written. The executing stage consists of making pattern, coloring, melorod (a process where the batik is submerged in boiling water),and finishing. The evaluating stage involves the overall evaluation of the process in making batik and evaluate the finished batik products. The research also discovers that the process of making batik also promote several desirable traits such as persistence, an appreciation of aesthetics, national pride in local culture and entrepreneurship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study involved an assessment of the relevance of women's background characteristics for predicting their offending in prison. Data were collected from over 650 women confined in a large prison for women in a Midwestern state, and the relative effects of these factors were examined. Findings revealed that background characteristics reflecting social demographics (e.g. race, sexual orientation) and women's life experiences (e.g. abuse as a child) were relevant for predicting women's violent and nonviolent misbehavior in prison. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this quantitative, pretest-posttest causal-comparative with control condition study was to examine if there was a difference in misconduct, as measured by reduction in occurrences of disciplinary infractions while incarcerated. General strain theory of criminal behavior provided the theoretical context for this study. The Arizona Department of Corrections' Inmate Data Search Database provided data that represented male inmate prison education participation in the following programs: Functional Literacy, Work-Based Education, and General Education Development. Due to non-normal distribution, a Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare inmate disciplinary infractions (dependent variable) by participation versus nonparticipation in prison education (independent variable). There was a statistically significant difference in the change in disciplinary infractions between inmates who did and did not participate in prison education programs (U = 9,254, z = -2.62, p = .009). Based on a Kruskal-Wallis H test, there was not a statistically significant difference between the three program types in the reduction of occurrences of inmate disciplinary infractions (p = .062). However, when accounting for average differences in misconduct during the times of participation for each program, there was a statistically significant difference in adjusted misconduct difference scores (H(2) = 41.53, p < .001). Pairwise comparisons indicated that General Education Development had a greater reduction of misconduct than the Functional Literacy (p = .002) and Work-based Education (p < .001) programs. Results suggest prison education has an impact on the reduction in misconduct when compared to nonparticipation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The text focuses on the relationship inmates have to their bodies during imprisonment. The data presented in this study are based on ethnographic research carried out in Czech men's high security prisons. The data set consists of interviews with partakers from the “world of prisoners”, observations from prisons and analysis of documents relating to Czech prison service. The analysis shows there is a strong relationship between the physical body and the process of constructing manhood/masculinity in the population of inmates. The physical body is one of crucial components of the masculine/macho prison code/culture. The attitude inmates have to their bodies seems to be altering, depending on the stage of imprisonment in which they currently are. For the description of this alteration I use the concept of the body as a project, which may serve as one of the possible ways of understanding the importance of the physical body to inmates during their imprisonment and changing motivations to its further development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identifying the facility-level correlates of inmate misconduct is necessary for improving safety for both inmates and staff. Assessing these factors is also critical to ensure the effectiveness of administrative controls and facility programming. Using a repeat measures analysis, this study examines a panel of 487 state correctional facilities to assess the dynamic effects that factors of administrative control and treatment availability have on inmate–inmate and inmate–staff assaults. Findings show that several types of facility programs were negatively associated with inmate–inmate assaults but not inmate–staff assaults. Also, several dimensions of administrative control were associated with inmate–staff assaults. Implications for research and correctional practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of European Review of Applied Psychology is the property of Elsevier B.V. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose Sampson and Wilson (1995) argued that the sources of crime are invariant across race, and are instead rooted in the structural differences between communities. This study involved an examination of the applicability of this thesis to incarcerated individuals. Methods Random samples totaling 2,388 blacks and 3,118 whites were drawn from 46 prisons in Ohio and Kentucky. Race-specific and pooled bi-level models of violent and nonviolent rule violations were estimated. Differences between race-specific models in the magnitude of regression coefficients for the same predictors and outcomes were compared. Results Findings revealed that individual and environmental effects were very similar between black and white inmates, although rates of violent and nonviolent rule breaking were higher for blacks. Within prisons, black inmates were also more likely than white inmates to engage in rule breaking. The individual-level relationship between race and violence was stronger in prisons with a lower ratio of black to white inmates and in prisons where inmates were more cynical towards legal authority. Conclusions Findings seemingly refute the applicability of the racial invariance hypothesis to an incarcerated population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of International Social Research is the property of Journal of International Social Research and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between prison tattoos and the criminal lifestyle and recidivism. Participants consisted of 81 male inmates with prison tattoos (i.e., prison-themed or prison-made tattoos), 75 inmates with nonprison tattoos (e.g., animal tattoos, tattoos of ethnic origin), 52 male inmates with no tattoos, and 66 college students with tattoos. Results indicated that inmates with prison tattoos differed from inmates with nonprison tattoos, inmates without tattoos, and college students with tattoos with regard to criminal thinking styles, were at increased risk of recidivism, and presented more institutional behavioral problems, resulting in more disciplinary infractions. There were no significant differences between inmate groups with regard to number of convictions; however, additional group comparisons indicated that inmates with visible tattoos and antisocial-themed tattoos were at greater risk for recidivism and received more disciplinary infractions than inmates without visible or antisocial-themed tattoos. Implications of these findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Drawing on official data and original interview data on 315 transgender inmates in California prisons for men, this research provides the first empirical portrayal of a prison population in California that is unique by virtue of being both transgender and incarcerated. Situated at the nexus of intersecting marginalities, transgender inmates fare far worse on standard demographic and health measures than their non-transgender counterparts in the US population, the California population, the US prison population, and the California prison population. With the possible exceptions of partnership status and educational attainment, these factors combine to reveal that transgender inmates are marginalized in heretofore undocumented ways. At a time in which an evidence-based approach to corrections is increasingly embraced by corrections officials in the US, this article provides the first systematic profile of transgender prisoners. It reveals they can be regarded as a special population that, from a policy point of view, raises what Minow calls 'the dilemma of difference'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the presence of intimacy in the female sections of prisons. Women do not abandon a consciousness of their body merely because they are in prison. Not all believe there can be true privacy in jail, but the vast majority expressed the presence of respect for the body as personal space which should not be violated.

The article focuses on relations between the public space, the convicts and the prison institution, within the private/public boundaries are continually negotiated. The prison's qualification as a "total institution" is increasingly discussed, since its growing opening to the outside can be observed and democratization process allow prisoners' access to global information and even their freedom of expression. But inmates, as their relatives, are dismissed from the recurring debate about the required prison reform. Detention conditions' normalization makes sentences looking like games (the "reality-tv" ones) and it is increasingly difficult to distinguish inside from outside, because of the latter is invaded by video surveillance and virtual phenomenons. Penalty evolutions resulte in revolution of and in convicts' private space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on research the author conducted in 2006 at a men's medium-security correctional facility and on the author's experiences during that research, this article provides some insight into the issues associated with interviewing inmates. Included are discussions of gaining access to prison, negotiating Institutional Review Boards, the construction of study concepts and instruments, inmate identity, and institutional influence. Emphasizing narrative and interactionist approaches, the author's goal is to help researchers understand their role in the interview process and the author introduces an organizational interview tool called "identity moments," wherein researchers can facilitate the retrospective and interpretative practice of building meaning through narrative. The purpose of the author's work is to provide some critical insights into conducting prison research so that future researchers might have a head start. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Very little is written in the literature by or about clinicians providing psychotherapy in prison. This article will examine psychotherapy in prison through the criteria of Langs' (Psychotherapy: A basic text. Northvale, NJ: Jason Aronson) therapeutic frame. These criteria include: stability and neutrality of the therapeutic setting, therapist anonymity, fee consideration, and confidentiality. I will use my experiences from various prison settings to examine similarities and differences between psychotherapy inside and outside prison. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although living in prison is difficult for all inmates, anecdotal evidence and a small number of qualitative studies on women's prisons suggest that females have greater social support needs while incarcerated. This claim is important for a more complete understanding of adjustment to prisons. In particular, extra- and intrainstitutional social support mechanisms may reduce the inmate-perceived stresses associated with imprisonment and yield fewer official rule infractions. Using a multilevel analysis, the authors explore ties between social support mechanisms and reported rules infractions of a nationally representative sample of male and female state prison inmates. Findings suggest that female inmates experienced more social support than did their male counterparts. Some of the included social support mechanisms seem to affect inmates' adjustment to prison, and the effect of marital status on misconduct varies by gender. The implications of these findings for understanding prison life and for prison administrators are also examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among the issues that confront prisons are their growth, their cost, the influx of mentally ill inmates, the need for addiction treatment, high recidivism rates, and the large number of expected releases. Despite a critical need to use available resources to resolve these issues, prison officials treat one such resource, their libraries, as though they were insignificant and dispensable. Library service for correctional staff, increased research into prison librarianship, and a working relationship with public libraries are ways the prison library can become part of the effort to enhance public safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world. Incarceration can increase HIV risk behaviors for individuals involved with the criminal justice system and may be a driver of HIV acquisition within the community.Methods: We used an agent-based model to simulate HIV transmission in a sexual-contact network representing heterosexual African American men and women in Philadelphia to identify factors influencing the impact of male mass incarceration on HIV acquisition in women. The model was calibrated using surveillance data and assumed incarceration increased the number of sexual contacts and decreased HIV care engagement for men post-release. Incarceration of a partner increased the number of sexual contacts for women. We compared a counterfactual scenario with no incarceration to scenarios varying key parameters to determine what factors drove HIV acquisition in women.Results: Setting the duration of male high-risk sexual behavior to two years post-release increased the number of HIV transmissions to women by more than 20%. Decreasing post-release HIV care engagement and increasing HIV acquisition risk attributable to sexually transmitted infections (STIs) also increased the number of HIV transmissions to women. Changing the duration of risk behavior for women, the proportion of women engaging in higher risk behavior, and the relative risk of incarceration for HIV-infected men had minimal impact.Conclusion: The mass incarceration of African American men can increase HIV acquisition in African American women on a population-level through factors including post-release high-risk behaviors, disruption of HIV care engagement among formerly incarcerated men, and increased STI prevalence. These findings suggest that the most influential points of intervention may be programs seeking to reduce male risk behaviors and promote HIV care engagement post-release, as well as STI testing and treatment programs for recently incarcerated men, as well as women with incarcerated partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]