Prison Models

There are three models of prisons that have been prominent in American since the early 1940’s: custodial, rehabilitative, and reintegration. Each model is designed differently based on its overriding goal, and this affects the physical design, policies, and programs that are implemented within each of the models.

Custodial Model
Archaic

Purpose: Control, focus is on maintaining security and order.

Goal: Punishment, this is the best way to provide deterrence against future crime.

Focus: Prisoners must be punished for their wrongdoings and prison life must be made so unpleasant so that offenders will hesitate to commit any new crimes upon release.

Theory: Classical, belief that humans operate under free will and an offender makes a choice to engage in criminal behavior believing benefits outweigh the costs.

Design: Radial, this allows for prisoners to have less contact with each other and allows for guards to monitor more prisoners at one time.

Management Style: Military style approach is used to control prisoners. Focus is on discipline and order with a clear and firm hierarchy of who is in charge. The decision process is left to the administration and the inmates are expected to be obedient and follow all the rules without questioning.

Administrative Style: Control model, authority is the hands of the prison administration. Prison administrators are inflexible and provide strict control over inmates’ lives. Communication is formal and professional and is restricted to official channels and must follow a formal chain of command.

Advantages: Good control, gives public feeling of safety and retribution, tight security against escapes.

Disadvantages: Inhumane treatment of prisoners, creates high tensions and violent atmosphere, enhances likelihood of riots.

Rehabilitative Model
Modern

Purpose: Rehabilitate

Goal: Treatment

Focus: Determining what caused the prisoner to commit the crime so that they can be treated and rehabilitated. If an offender receives the proper medical and psychological care they will be “cured” of their criminality.

Theory: Positivism, belief that crime is caused or determined by psychological factors or biological deficiencies and these can be diagnosed and treated by scientific means; idea that an offenders actions are out of their control.

Design: Courtyard, this allows prisoners to have as much “fresh air” as possible which is known to have many medical and psychological benefits.

Management Style: Hospital, prison staff has more professional training, and prisoners are treated as patients. Use benevolent authority to constructively change inmates from violent antisocial criminals to good citizens. There is a clear and orderly chain of command, but inmates are encourages to be involved in their care. Inmates are not involved in any decision making processes, and have no forms of self-governing.

Administrative Style: Consensual model, less restrictive correctional environment. Communication is both formal and informal. Situations dealing with inmates needs are formal while day to day interactions with inmates are less formal. Open communication is encouraged. The inmates are allowed to question their treatment options but the prison staff and administration has the authority to make all of the decisions.

Advantages: Lower recidivism rates, more humane, prisoners can get help may not have otherwise been able to get.

Disadvantages: More expensive, easier for escapes, treatment can be ineffective.

Reintegration Model
Progressive

Purpose: Reintegrate

Goal: Education

Focus: Prisoners should be given every chance to learn responsibility and good citizenship by offering a variety of education programs and assisting with re-entry into society such as finding housing and jobs.

Theory: Social disorganization, a lack of education and resources causes community social controls have broken down causing a criminal culture to emerge. By providing an education and allocating the proper resources to inmates to re-enter these communities, you are combatting the forces that keep communities disorganized. Offenders will learn new ways and have better resources and will not look to re-emerge into the criminal culture they came from.

Design: Campus, this allows for a more college-like atmosphere so inmates can focus on education, learning new skills, and how to adapt back into society.

Management Style: Academic, prison staff and administration are there to teach and guide inmates on the skills and resources needed to reintegrate into society. It is up to the inmate to take advantage of services and programs offered. Inmates are allowed to take an active role in the decision making process, and are encouraged to question processes and procedures. Inmates openly and freely express their opinions.

Administrative Style: Responsibility Model, prison administration maintains order by placing limitations but inmates are allowed to self-govern within the restricted environment. Communication is informal and inmates are allowed initiate conversations which encourages a more social setting

Advantages: Inexpensive, fosters inmate dignity, teaches responsibility.

Disadvantages: System can be abused easily, little control, inability to measure effectiveness.

References

Clark, D. N. (2004, 08 09). Reintegration or recidivism of released persons. Retrieved from http://fcwpp.quaker.org/reintegration & recidivism paper.pdf Gaines, L. K., & Miller, R. L. (2013). Criminal justice in action . (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning Salinas, G. L. (2009). A preliminary analysis: Prison models and prison management models and the texas prison system. (Unpublished master’s thesis, Texas State University) Retrieved from https://digital.library.txstate.edu/bitstream/handle/10877/3639/fulltext.pdf