A Policy for Adult Education in Penal Institutions

The most pressing issue for prison administrators today is the problem of how best to effectively rehabilitate the incarcerated. This paper argues for an education policy which promotes adult education as part of the rehabilitation process, one that makes education an appealing prospect for the prisoner by providing him with both a rationale for work and the capacity to move into society as an independent person, with sense of sociability and worth restored. Drawing on current literature in prison sociology, an outline is given of the impact of incarceration on inmates and the problems consequently arising for the rehabilitation process. A possible workable policy for adult education in prisons is then formulated.     

Examining the Effect of Correctional Programming on Perceptions of Likelihood of Recidivism Among Incarcerated Prisoners

ABSTRACT

For many years, policymakers and criminal justice scholars have debated the impact of correctional programming on recidivism. This debate is currently unresolved. Using data from 1,234 currently incarcerated inmates in a mid-Southern state, this study examines whether inmates who participate in correctional programming while incarcerated are less likely to feel that they will recidivate upon release from prison. The findings from this research suggest that program participation while in prison has little impact on the inmates’ perceived recidivism, although important programming effects may still occur. Policy implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Current Inmate Expected Post-Release Needs and Perceived Barriers to Future Voluntary After-Care Program Attendance

When attendance in after-care programs that may help ex-offenders successfully reenter society is not a mandated condition of prison release, getting individuals to voluntarily attend these programs is challenging. In order to help social service agencies better encourage ex-offenders to participate in these programs, it is important to understand ex-offenders’ anticipated needs (thereby increasing possible motivation for attendance) and perceived barriers to program attendance prior to their actual release. Consequently, 256 individuals incarcerated in a county prison in northeastern Pennsylvania were surveyed to address these issues. Findings suggest that women, Hispanics, and parents of children under age 18 anticipate the greatest number of needs upon their future prison release. The most commonly anticipated post-release needs were obtaining food, clothing, education, and child care, although there are group differences. Regarding anticipated programing issues, all inmates foresee transportation barriers to post-release program attendance, and bus passes were the most preferred form of assistance. Scheduling and child care issues were also anticipated programing obstacles and were most pronounced for parents of young children, who report the greatest amount of anticipated needs but also the most barriers to voluntary post-release program attendance. Other group variations and programing implications for voluntary after care are discussed.     

家庭背景、教育期望与大学教育获得：基于上海市调查数据的实证研究

家庭背景通过子女教育实现优势地位的代际传递,以往国内研究认为,这种代际传递主要通过教育分流和文化资本、社会资本机制得以实现。本文根据威斯康星教育获得模型的研究成果,引入大学教育期望作为家庭背景影响子女大学教育获得的中间机制。研究采用2010年“上海居民家庭生活状况调查”数据。分析发现,在少年时具有大学教育期望的人,最终获得大学教育的机会明显增加,而个人大学教育期望的产生又主要同家庭背景和父母期望有关。具有优势地位的父母（尤其是接受过高等教育的父母）对子女上大学的期望较高,并激发了子女上大学的期望。同时,具有优势地位的父母能更多地参与到子女的教育过程中,为子女创造更多的支持条件,这些都有助于子女维持和实现自己的教育期望。因而,整个代际传递的逻辑可以表述为：家庭社会经济地位越高的子女,其上大学的期望也越高,这种期望最终会转化为大学教育获得的优势。     

Current tobacco policies in U.S. adult male prisons☆

The current national trend in the restriction of smoking and use of tobacco products is extending to the prison system. At the same time that city, state and the federal governments are limiting smoking in public places and businesses, state and federal prison systems are limiting use in correctional facilities. The data for this paper was collected by mail from departments of correction in the fifty states, the District of Columbia and the federal Bureau of Prisons. The results show a continuing trend in tobacco limitation policies at male prisons within the U. S. Several states totally ban all tobacco and only a few still allow generally unlimited use. Limitation policies range from segregation into smoking and nonsmoking areas to the banishment of inmates and staff to smoking areas outside prison buildings.While many see a nonsmoking prison system as the wave of the future, use of tobacco in prisons is still common. This research examines the official reason given for changes in tobacco policy and the alterations in prison operations that developed after restrictions were implemented. Increased tensions developed among inmates, staff and administration as a result of the new policies. For those prison systems that banned tobacco, an active black market operation developed eclipsing other contraband problems.     

社区服刑人员生活适应状况研究

本文以对河北省某市166名社区服刑人员调查数据为依据，从居住情况、经济收入和人际交往三个方面描述了社区服刑人员的生活适应状况。同时，用六个变量分别与该三个方面做交叉表并进行卡方检验，发现文化程度、婚姻状况、有无服刑经历和户籍对社区服刑人的生活适应有影响，性别与年龄没有影响社区服刑人员的生活适应。     

Differences in inmate-inmate and inmate-staff altercations: Examples from a medium security prison

Inmate violence is a major concern for correctional organizations. Most research on violence lump together inmate-inmate and inmate-staff violence and attempt to understand them from a single perspective. This article posits that inmate-inmate and inmate-staff violence are different phenomenon. Data from a medium security prison is used to understand the relationship between inmate-inmate and inmate-staff violence and other variables. Inmate-inmate altercations are related to structural and interpersonal variables. Inmate-staff altercations are related to the extent to which inmates are involved in social relationship with other inmates and see the correctional staff as a physical threat to them. variables. Inmate-staff altercations are related to the extent to which inmates are involved in social relationship with other inmates and see the correctional staff as a physical threat to them. variables. Inmate-staff altercations are related to the extent to which inmates are involved in social relationship with other inmates and see the correctional staff as a physical threat to them.     

New Directions for the Study of Incarcerated Older Adults: Using Social Capital Theory

As the population of older adults continues to rise, so, too, does the population of older adults in prison. The body of literature on older adults in corrections is scant, particularly with regard to health and social functioning. Past studies of aging inmates primarily focus on health care and related costs. The purpose of this article is twofold: (a) outline and synthesize the research on older adults living in prison; and (b) propose a framework for future research and intervention development based on social capital theory. Recommendations for social work practice, programs, and research are discussed.     

Pre-arrest drug use and associated risk factors among incarcerated offenders in China

ABSTRACT

Past research has consistently reported a higher rate of drug use before arrest among incarcerated inmates than that of the general population. However, there is a lack of either qualitative or quantitative research on this topic under the Chinese setting. Drawing upon survey data collected from 1,518 inmates in a Chinese province, this study attempts to fill in the research gap by assessing the connection between risk factors associated with pre-arrest use. Roughly a quarter of all inmates in the sample had the experience of drug use before arrest. Regression analysis suggested that impulsivity, volatile temper, and perceived prevalence of drug use in neighborhood were significantly related to drug use among inmates. Two control variables include offense type and stable job, were also found to be significant predictors of drug use. Implications for research and policy were highlighted in the end.     

Minority comparison model: Effects of Whites’ multiracial evaluation on symbolic racism and racialized policy preferences

Most Racial Studies primarily focus on African Americans without paying attention to nonblack minorities, and it fails to capture recent increase in racial diversity. Based on previous theories and empirical findings, we propose a new model, minority comparison model, which accounts for theoretical shortcomings in Racial Studies. This model (1) captures psychological processes that compare blacks and nonblacks, and (2) explores the effects of whites’ multiracial evaluation on racialized policy preferences. Drawing on a 2008 national representative sample, this study finds that whites who have positive stereotype of nonblacks (e.g., Hispanics and/or Asians) but negative stereotype of blacks show substantially higher symbolic racism and stronger opposition to Affirmative Action, whereas whites who have positive stereotype of blacks but negative stereotypes of nonblacks have stronger opposition to expansive immigration policy. Our study offers new ways of understanding and accounting for symbolic racism in modern context, and shows how whites’ preferences in racialized policies are influenced by multiracial evaluation.     

The Grief Experience of Prison Inmate Hospice Volunteer Caregivers

Correctional institutions are obligated to provide end-of-life care to a population with complex medical needs. Prison hospices are increasingly being formed to address this demand. Few empirical studies have examined the impact of caring for dying inmates on the hospice inmate volunteers, who, in several prison health care systems, provide direct care. In this study, experiences of the inmate hospice volunteers with death were investigated to illuminate their grief processes. Understanding the bereavement needs of hospice volunteers and how prison hospice volunteers navigate grief and remain committed to providing excellent hospice care can inform the grief processes and practices of hospice care professionals.     

Strategic Planning for Support Services for Children with a Parent or Close Relative in Prison

It has long been recognized that children with a parent or close relative in prison are more likely to experience educational difficulties, emotional distress, family breakdown and a substantial reduction in family income (Boswell 2002; Smith et al. 2007; Morgan et al. 2013b; Morgan and Gill 2013). Consequently, children with a parent in prison are more likely to require support from statutory services, especially education and social care. However, statutory support for this group of children is sparse, and children of prisoners tend not to be identified as a priority group. The demand on local authorities to spend their limited budgets wisely means tough decisions have to be made. These decisions are not taken in a vacuum: they are taken in a context of local need, consumer representation, central and local politics; underpinned by the values and attitudes of individual members as well as by the ethos or culture of the local authority itself. In this article we apply Axford's typology (2009) of the different cultures which underpin local authority service provision to data from a research study carried out in 2011 in one local authority which explored support provision in schools for children of prisoners. We examine the contradictions and gaps within the local authority's attempts to synergize the different modules of service delivery into a coherent pattern of provision, and we explore how changes in strategic culture might lead to improvements being made in terms of service delivery to this group of ‘vulnerable’ children.     

扩张的中国高等教育：教育质量与社会分层

本文利用2011年首都高校生发展状况调查的数据，分析北京高校学生的分层现状，并讨论了1999年高等教育扩张对大学生入学和就业分层的影响，发现这一轮扩张强化了社会阶层的复制而非再生产。一方面，在其他条件不变的情况下，来自社会优势阶层家庭的学生有更大概率进入具有更好教育质量的精英院校，这说明中国高等教育在这一时期具有排他性的特征；家庭的社会阶层背景对子女教育分层的影响在中学阶段更加明显；家庭背景对专业选择没有显著影响。另一方面，在控制家庭社会经济背景的影响后，教育质量与学生选择市场化部门就业的概率和工作起薪显著正相关。如果高等教育扩张降低了教育质量，就可能削弱高等教育对社会阶层流动的促进作用。     

Children with an imprisoned parent: children's and caregivers' narratives

Previous studies have found that children may experience adverse effects from parental imprisonment. However, little research concerning this issue from children's perspectives has been undertaken in Hong Kong. In order to fill the knowledge gap, this study aims at exploring the challenges and resilience of children with a parent in prison. Nine children aged between 9 and 11 years with a parent in prison, and their caregivers, were interviewed. Their life experience and feelings during parental imprisonment were explored. The caregivers were asked about changes in the children's behaviour and resilience in the children. Children reported that they experienced academic stress and psychological distress, including sadness and problems in having to conceal their parent's imprisonment. They benefited through positive thinking, holding religious beliefs and talking to trusted persons. For caregivers, children's conduct problems, psychological distress and suppression of feelings were reported as the challenges children faced, while object hitting for venting emotion, religious beliefs and engagement in activities were reported as helping children to cope. The article concludes by making a number of recommendations concerning the provision of services, including the establishment of mutual-aid self-help groups, mentoring programmes and programmes promoting the importance of positive thinking for the children, and trainings for caregivers on understanding children's needs, as well as public education on the social stigma of parental imprisonment.     

Revisiting the Impact of Prison Building on Job Growth: Education,Incarceration, and County‐Level Employment, 1976–2004*

Objectives. It is widely believed that prison construction offers significant economic benefits to local areas. We review the popular and scholarly literature and provide a quantitative analysis of claims. Methods. We analyze data on all existing and new prisons in the United States since 1960 to assess the impact of these prisons on the pace of public, private, and total employment growth in U.S. counties from 1976 to 2004. Results. Our results suggest that enhanced human capital is associated with employment gains and cast doubt on the assertion that prisons provide economic benefits to local areas. We provide evidence that prison construction impedes economic growth in rural counties, especially in counties that lag behind in educational attainment. Conclusions. Based on empirical results, this research casts further doubt on claims that prisons offer a viable economic development option for struggling rural communities. Possible explanations for the failure of prisons to help local areas are explored, including existing corrections officers moving to fill openings, adverse local impacts of prison labor, and paucity of local multipliers when a prison opens.     

Increasing heterogeneity in the economic returns to higher education in urban China

This study investigates individual heterogeneity in the economic returns to higher education in urban China following large-scale higher education expansion. We draw on data from the urban section of two waves of the Chinese General Social Survey, analyzing a sample of 1022 individuals in total who (1) were aged between 25 and 32; (2) completed high school education; and (3) were currently employed. Individual-level estimates of the distributions of the returns to higher education are obtained using a nonparametric kernel approach. While the average rate of returns to higher education increased for the 2003–2010 period, the extent of heterogeneity in these returns increased as well. Analysis of the heterogeneous returns to higher education across the distribution of income shows that the effects of college education are greatest at the upper end of the income distribution. Moreover, effect heterogeneity across the income distribution increased from 2003 to 2010.     

高师德育应突出师范性

德育是学校教育的灵魂,高等师范院校的德育教育必须突出师范性,这是由高师的培养目标和我国的国情决定的.高师德育必须以培养造就道德主体为根本原则.其基本内容和实现的途径主要有理想信念教育和课堂理论教学;社会公德教育和学生自我管理;职业道德教育和社会活动的参与;言行礼仪教育和校园文化生活.     

Parenting education for young fathers in prison

This paper explores the effectiveness of delivering an intensive parenting class to groups of young fathers in prison. Evaluation was based on course feedback from a total of 75 participants. Results demonstrate that even within a group of young prisoners of similar ages there were diverse parenting educational requirements, indicating a need for courses to remain flexible and participant‐led. In considering parenting support needs, three‐quarters of all course participants highlighted the importance of better visiting procedures to allow them to keep in contact with their children whilst in prison. Participants expressed reluctance in accessing parenting support services after release, with the majority of the young fathers indicating that they did not need or want to access formal post‐release provision. Results suggest that further efforts need to be made to support young fathers in custody and after release, with implications for preventing reoffending and engaging young men in parenting education.     

Prison Experiences and Psychological Distress among Older Inmates

This study investigates relationships between older prisoners’ social experiences and their levels of distress. One hundred and seventy-three older prisoners (aged ≥ 50 years) from 8 Australian prisons were administered the Kessler Psychological Distress (K10) Scale, with additional information collected via individual interviews. Psychological distress scores were significantly associated with measures of self-reported safety (p < .001), prison victimization (p < .05), perceived social support from staff (p < .01) and inmates (p < .001), current employment (p < .05), and level of exercise (p < .001) among older inmates. Findings suggest that strategies for improving sense of safety, social support and level of exercise may ameliorate distress among older prisoners.     

Do Immigrant Minority Parents Have More Consistent College Aspirations for Their Children?*

Objective. Educational aspirations are an important predictor of eventual attainment. We examine if immigrant parents have higher aspirations for their children compared to native‐born parents and whether they are more likely to maintain high aspirations over time. Methods. Using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study‐Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS‐K), we document differences in the formation and maintenance of white, black, Hispanic, and Asian parents' college aspirations for their children between kindergarten, third, and fifth grades. We also examine the role of acculturation in the stability of immigrant parents' aspirations. Results. We find that immigrant parents are more optimistic about their children's educational trajectories than are native‐born parents and that over time they are more likely to maintain consistently high aspirations for their children. Conclusion. Immigrant parents do not see their children's future as downwardly mobile, and instead remain optimistic, consistently reinforcing messages about college plans throughout childhood.