NCJ Number
53872
Date Published
1976
Length
138 pages
Annotation
AN EXPLORATORY FIELD INVESTIGATION OF THE CHARACTERISTICS OF COMMUNICATIVE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN PRISONERS AND GUARDS IN THE INDIANA STATE PRISON IS DESCRIBED.
Abstract
BASED ON THE THEORIES OF ERVING GOFFMAN, WHO HELD THAT THE INMATES AND STAFFS OF TOTAL INSTITUTIONS HOLD A BASIC HOSTILITY TOWARD ONE ANOTHER, THIS RESEARCH ATTEMPED TO DISCOVER WHETHER SUCH HOSTILITY EXISTED IN A PRISON AND TO DESCRIBE GUARD-PRISONER INTERACTION. IN STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS WITH 25 GUARDS AND 25 PRISONERS, TWO QUESTIONS WERE ASKED: (1) WHAT ATTITUDES DO PRISONERS AND GUARDS HOLD TOWARD ONE ANOTHER? AND (2) WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF PRISONER-GUARD INTERACTION? EIGHT SUBQUESTIONS RELATED TO THE SECOND INQUIRY FOCUSED ON SPECIFIC COMMUNICATIVE CHARACTERISTIC OF THE INTERACTION. THE RESULTS INDICATE A NEGATIVE INTERGROUP ATTITUDE. ALTHOUGH THE PRISONERS REPORTED INFREQUENT INTERACTION WITH GUARDS, THE FULL SAMPLE NAMED 62 DIFFERENT TOPICS OF INTERACTION. FIFTY PERCENT WERE INSTITUTIONAL IN NATURE; NONINSTITUTIONAL TOPICS, HOWEVER, WERE ALSO NONPERSONAL. BOTH GROUPS REPORTED A FREEDOM TO INTERACT AT ANY TIME OF THE DAY, ALTHOUGH THERE SEEMED TO BE A TENDENCY TO INTERACT AT SHIFT CHANGES, MEALTIMES, DURING MOVEMENT TO AND FROM WORK, AND AT MAIL CALL. BOTH PRISONERS AND GUARDS ESTIMATED THAT THEIR INTERACTIONS LASTED 4 TO 7 MINUTES, AND WHILE THE GUARDS TEND TO USE A VERBAL PATTERN OF AUTHORITY WHEN ADDRESSING PRISONERS, THE PRISONERS MORE FREELY ADMITTED TO USING PROFANITIES. ALTHOUGH BOTH GROUPS LISTED SEVERAL FREQUENTLY USED SLANG TERMS, NEITHER PERCEIVED THESE AS UNIQUE TO THE PRISON. FINALLY, LITTLE FRIENDLY INTERACTION WAS PERCEIVED BY EITHER THE GUARDS OR PRISONERS. TABULAR DATA WERE PROVIDED, ALONG WITH THE SURVEY INSTRUMENT AND A BIBLIOGRAPHY. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED)