NCJ Number
176232
Date Published
1998
Length
110 pages
Annotation
This study was conducted to measure the extent of prisoner- on-prisoner victimization at four correctional facilities in England, to describe the dynamics of different forms of victimization, to explore the response of prison staff to bullying, and to make recommendations about the creation of safe prison environments.
Abstract
Every inmate in the four facilities was given an opportunity to complete a lengthy questionnaire that covered such details as age, ethnic group, and previous custodial history; feelings of safety within the facility; personal experience of victimization in the past month; whether incidents were reported to prison staff; and views about the prevalence of bullying and how it could be prevented. The response rate was high--92 percent of young offenders and 97 percent of adult offenders filled out questionnaires. Interviews were also conducted with both victims and victimizers and with prison staff. Study findings are detailed in terms of the nature and social context of victimization and bullying, individual inmate responses to bullying, inmate views of prison staff responses, and the prevention of victimization and bullying. Findings show how predatory inmates use bullying and other forms of victimization to establish, maintain, and exploit their domination of other inmates. 50 tables and 38 tables