Prison Overcrowding and Disciplinary Problems: An Analysis of the Texas Prison System
- 1 June 1983
- journal article
- research article
- Published by SAGE Publications in The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science
- Vol. 19 (2), 163-176
- https://doi.org/10.1177/002188638301900212
Abstract
Data on prison overcrowding and disciplinary rates are examined. Trends for the total system, as well as individual institutions within the Texas Department of Corrections are presented. This is followed by analysis of data from individual inmates. Both assault and total disciplinary rates are found to be a function of the age of the inmate population rather than overcrowding. This is consistent with findings from the Federal Bureau of Prisons as well as data from English prisons (Nacci, Teitelbaum & Prather, 1977; Farrington & Nuttall, 1980). Although prison overcrowding may be an important factor in the overall quality of prison life, it is inappropriate to conclude that it has much influence on either the total disciplinary or the assault rates in prisons.Keywords
This publication has 10 references indexed in Scilit:
- Prison size, overcrowding, prison violence, and recidivismJournal of Criminal Justice, 1980
- In Pursuit of Preconceptions: A Reply to the Claim of Booth and His Colleagues That Household Crowding is Not an Important VariableAmerican Sociological Review, 1980
- Criminal JusticeAnnual Review of Sociology, 1979
- Overcrowding, Isolation, and Human Behavior: Exploring the Extremes in Population DistributionPublished by Elsevier BV ,1978
- Death rates, psychiatric commitments, blood pressure, and perceived crowding as a function of institutional crowdingJournal of Nonverbal Behavior, 1978
- On Behalf of a Moratorium on Prison ConstructionCrime & Delinquency, 1977
- The Relationship between Illness Complaints and Degree of Crowding in a Prison EnvironmentEnvironment and Behavior, 1976
- Crowding Studies and Urban Life: A Critical ReviewJournal of the American Institute of Planners, 1975
- Violence in Prisons: A Sociological AnalysisAmerican Journal of Sociology, 1974
- Socialization in Correctional CommunitiesAmerican Sociological Review, 1961