NCJ Number
228469
Journal
Criminal Justice Review Volume: 34 Issue: 3 Dated: September 2009 Pages: 404-427
Date Published
September 2009
Length
24 pages
Annotation
This study examined the role of individual and environmental factors on inmate perception of safety inside prison.
Abstract
Support was found for the differential impact hypothesis; victimization experiences have unique impacts on particular feelings of safety and feelings of safety were differentially affected by particular types of victimization experiences. Localized social relations and recent victimization experiences had the largest individual and collective impact on feeling safe against harms inside prison. "Safety paradox" refers to the paradoxical phenomenon in which prisoners feel safe in ostensibly unsafe places, such as prisons. The objective of this article was to develop and test a general model of feeling safe that was applicable to prison settings to better understand feelings of safety among inmates. The investigation sought to test several general hypotheses related to the specification model and several specific hypotheses regarding the role of predisposing, socializing, and localizing factors that were unique to prison settings. It used survey data from approximately 7,000 male inmates residing in 13 adult prisons within a single State correctional system. Tables, figures, appendix, note, and references