Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Cochran, Joshua C.

Titel

The ties that bind or the ties that break: Examining the relationship between visitation and prisoner misconduct

Ist Teil von

• Journal of criminal justice, 2012-09, Vol.40 (5), p.433-440

Ort / Verlag

New York: Elsevier Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

2012

Quelle

Applied Social Sciences Index & Abstracts (ASSIA)

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Prior theory and research suggest that inmate visitation can reduce misconduct in prison. However, prior studies have not accounted for the longitudinal and heterogeneous nature of these experiences. This paper addresses this research gap by examining variation in visitation experiences and the relationship between patterns of visitation and misconduct. Using a cohort of offenders incarcerated in Florida between 2000 and 2002, group-based trajectory model analyses were used to identify groups of inmates based on their visitation and misconduct patterns. Dual trajectory analysis was used to then assess the extent to which the development of visitation and misconduct patterns are interrelated. Visitation, and more consistent visitation in particular, is associated with less prison misconduct. Visitation may reduce inmate misconduct. Implications for future research, theory, and policy are discussed. ► Visitation patterns are heterogeneous. ► Prisoners who are visited more consistently engage in lower levels of misconduct. ► Prison systems may want to consider promoting more frequent and consistent visitation. ► Future research should account for the longitudinal and heterogeneous nature of prison experiences.