NCJ Number
212220
Journal
The Prison Journal Volume: 85 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2005 Pages: 515-534
Date Published
December 2005
Length
20 pages
Annotation
This study examined inmate violence within Texas county jails to determine relationships between select input variables and the incidence of inmate assaults on staff and other inmates.
Abstract
Since the inception of incarceration as a sanction strategy, inmate assaults on both staff and other inmates in correctional settings have been a topic of fundamental interest to both practitioners and theorists. Therefore, numerous scholarly studies have been conducted, developing elaborate theories in the understanding of inmate violence in correctional settings. This study analyzed survey responses and existing documentation from 138 county jail administrators in Texas to determine relationships between select input variables and the incidence of inmate assaults on staff and other inmates. Logistic regression was used to examine the effects of importation model and managerial model variables on inmate assaults. Three hypotheses were tested: (1) that the incidence of inmate assaults would be less likely in those jurisdictions with a higher rehabilitative index; (2) that metropolitan areas would have more assaults than non-metropolitan areas; and (3) that assaults would be more prevalent in those jurisdictions reporting a higher proportion of maximum-security inmates. Among the three hypotheses, the first was rejected; the second produced a strong relationship with inmate-on-inmate assaults but no discernible relationship with inmate-on-staff assaults; and the third was confirmed by comparisons of the proportionality of maximum-security inmates with inmate-on-staff assaults and with inmate-on-inmate assaults. The importation model approach was supported by hypotheses two and three. Tables and references