15.4.1 Dispositional & Situational Explanations of Aggression in Prisons

Institutional aggression in the context of prisons: Dispositional and situational explanations

Dispositional explanation: Prison violence is caused by the personal characteristics of prisoners

• The importation model

Evaluation:

Situational explanation: Prison violence is caused by the unpleasant environment and poor conditions in prisons.

• The deprivation model:

Situational explanation – the deprivation model.

Clemmer argues that the cause of institutional aggression is the prison environment itself. Lack of freedom and harsh prison conditions can be stressful for inmates, which results in them coping by resorting to aggression and violent behaviour. Some prisoners may withdraw, but others may react with violence.

McCorkle et al 1995 – found that situational factors such as overcrowding, lack of privacy and lack of meaningful activity significantly influenced assaults on inmates by other inmates and assaults on staff in prions

Griffit and Veitch 1971 – high temperature and noise levels produce, more negative emotions leading to aggressive behaviour. This suggests that the situation caused aggression

Characteristics – overcrowding, drugs, deprivation from heterosexual relationships

Dispositional explanation – the importation model`

Cressey and Irwin argue that prison inmates come from the outside world and bring (import) their subculture of criminality with them. Aggression in prison is no different to the aggression displayed by these people outside, they may be from subcultures where aggression is valued and respected. This can include their beliefs, norms, attitudes and learning experiences as well as other personal characteristics e.g. gender and ethnicity. This explanation is based on individual nature (inherited behaviour and temperament) and nurture (their social environment). Thus, the willingness of inmates to use violence inside prisons to settle disputes reflects their lives before they were imprisoned

Allender and Marcel 2003 - When people have gang membership outside of prison these gang members disproportionally engage in acts of prison violence

The integration model – merges the ideas of the importation and deprivation models and is now widely accepted as a better explanation of prison aggression than the other models separately

Characteristics – history of drugs/substance abuse, social class, ethnicity, gender

Evaluation:

Real-world application: HMP Woodhill and the deprivation model

Woodhill 2010 set up two new units for violent prisoners that were less claustrophobic, and less prison-like and gave a view of the outside. They controlled temperature reduced noise and masked it with radio music. They found that assaults on prison staff and other inmates were virtually eradicated, providing powerful support for the role of situational variables as a cause of prison violence