Implications for 'New Generation' Prisons of Existing Psychological Research Into Prison Design and Use (From Problems of Long-Term Imprisonment, P 214-227, 1987, Anthony E Bottoms and Roy Light, eds. -See NCJ-108254)

• NCJ Number: 108263
• Author(s): D Canter
• Date Published: 1987
• Length: 14 pages
• Sale Source: Avebury Publishing Co
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: *This document is currently unavailable from NCJRS.

Annotation

Any consideration of prison design and use must take into account the continued prospect of prison overcrowding, the inextricable links between appropriate accommodation and management procedures and staffing levels, and the need to balance respect and dignity for the inmates with effective control of the prison population.

Abstract

In addition to these considerations, prison design must be cognizant of the relationship between design features and inmates' perception of the environment, the cognitive ecology of various spaces within the institution and how they affect relations between inmate and staff and among inmates, and the match between design and management. The new generation prison designs attempt to take these factors into account and to counteract some of the concomitants of custody that are not a part of the requirements of imprisonment per se. Evidence is accumulating that podular designs, bright colors, and avoiding the use of bars can contribute directly to safer and less destructive prison environments. By permitting inmates more control over access to parts of the prison other than individual cells in combination to ready access by staff, such designs provide an atmosphere in which prison life will be tolerated rather than challenged. 1 table and 10 references.