NCJ Number
131739
Journal
Rassegna penitenziaria e criminologica Volume: 1 Issue: 3 Dated: (1988) Pages: 81-100
Date Published
1988
Length
20 pages
Annotation
The importance of reaching a deeper understanding of the convict personality through a more scientific approach and improved research methods is emphasized as this may result in fairer treatment of prisoners and better application of the norms governing prisons and criminal trials.
Abstract
The authors provide an analysis of various hypotheses regarding any measures to be taken during the implementation phase of the penalty which might require medical and/or legal evaluation. A deeper understanding of convict personality from the scientific point of view might result in improved treatment of inmates. Cooperation between judicial and prison authorities at all levels is even more essential now; the consequences of the steps taken to determine penal measures have become so extensive that they require the use of all the available tools in order to have access to data as analytical, precise, and scientifically sound as possible. Such data would establish an indispensable technical foundation for understanding the convict personality as well as inmate behavior, which enables the provision of more accurate inmate evaluation and thus fairer application of legal norms. 13 footnotes and 40 references