The Pains of Imprisonment

What are the primary constituents of stress in prison, and how can it be ameliorated? The specific conditions that create stress -- from the initial loss of freedom, to overcrowding, victimization and riots -- are described and analyzed. The effects of prison on specific populations: women, minorities, adolescents, and parolees, are also researched. Recommendations for long-term policy are made for maximizing the environmental resources of the prison, and improving classification and treatment. `...highly recommended for all professional and academic libraries. It is suitable for both upper-division undergraduate and graduate students in the areas of stress, psychology, penology, sociology, and criminal justice.′ -- Choice, July/August 1983 `...the specific conclusions and policy recommendations of the research in this volume will clearly be of interest to an international readership. The social worker, in particular, will be usefully informed of the behavioural consequences amongst inmates (and, to a lesser extent, staff) of recent changes in prison conditions such as overcrowding...the strengths of this text lie...in its detailed ethnography of prison experience, and its practical recommendations to prison staff, psychologists and social workers, concerning how most effectively to alleviate the excess of suffering which current policies and physical conditions enforced on prisoners.′ -- The International Journal of Social Work `...the book is a successful scholarly discussion of the "pains of imprisonment" and, like all good scholarship, leads the reader to consider future directions and practical applications of current knowledge.′ -- Contemporary Psychology, Vol 29 No 7, 1984.