NCJ Number
206024
Date Published
2004
Length
253 pages
Annotation
This introductory text for students of penology, sociology, and feminism analyzes key issues associated with rapid increases in the number of women in prison in the United Kingdom and throughout the world, with the intent of exploring prison issues in general and the historical and contemporary politics of gender and penal justice.
Abstract
The first chapter critiques the various historical perspectives of women's imprisonment, with attention to their common themes, contradictions, and omissions. The chapter shows how these histories have been shaped by ever-changing ideologies of gender and penology. The second chapter presents contemporary data on women's imprisonment as presented in official British statistics as well as official and unofficial reports. The chapter discusses the characteristics of women who go to prison and the types of offenses for which they are imprisoned. Also explored are the experiences of women as they are processed through the criminal justice and penal systems. The third chapter discusses the main contemporary issues that stem from women's incarceration, namely, a safe environment, being treated with respect, constructive and purposeful prison regimes, and prerelease training. The next three chapters are the book's main theoretical discussions, as they identify and discuss both mainstream and feminist perspectives on women's imprisonment and theories regarding noncustodial alternatives to prison. Among the issues discussed in these chapters are the rationale for the current prison regimes for women; political explanations and penological explanations for the increase in women's imprisonment; whether prison is effective in rehabilitating women; and cultural explanations, classical approaches, feminist approaches, and Foucauldian feminist approaches to the issue of women's imprisonment. Issues discussed regarding alternatives to imprisonment for women are community-based punishment orders, drug treatment, electronic monitoring, hostels, intensive supervision, and restorative justice. What works best for women is also discussed. In the final chapter, the authors draw on their own years of research experience in discussing some of the primary practical and ethical issues likely to confront researchers in the field of corrections for women. These issues include research design, research access, contacting research participants, and leaving the research site. 410 references and a subject index