NCJ Number
28464
Date Published
1974
Length
184 pages
Annotation
THIS TEXT APPLIES ECONOMIC PRINCIPLES TO THE ANALYSIS OF PRISON CONFINEMENT, FOCUSING ON THE INMATE ECONOMIC SYSTEM, PRISON HUSTLING, AND INMATE CAREERS IN BOTH MEN'S AND WOMEN'S INSTITUTIONS.
Abstract
BASED ON OBSERVATIONS OF PRISON POPULATIONS, PENOLOGICAL STUDIES, THE WRITINGS OF OFFENDERS THEMSELVES, AND A SURVEY OF THE LITERATURE OF AMERICA'S PRISON SYSTEMS, THIS TEXT EXAMINES THE INMATE CULTURE, ECONOMY, AND SOCIALIZATION. THE AUTHORS STATE THAT PRISONS ARE ISLANDS OF POVERTY IN WHICH A HIGH DEMAND IS CREATED FOR GOODS AND SERVICES SUCH AS COFFEE, FOOD, DRUGS, WEAPONS, AND HOMOSEXUAL PROSTITUTION. ALTHOUGH THE PRISON SYSTEM PROVIDES A BASIC SUBSISTENCE FOR THE INMATES, IT DENIES THEM LIGITIMATE INCOME-PRODUCING ACTIVITIES. THE AUTHORS DIRECT THEIR ATTENTION TO THE SUB ROSA LIFE STYLE BROUGHT ON BY A SYSTEM OF CONTROL OVER PROHIBITED GOODS AND SERVICES. PATTERNS OF PRISON RACKETS, PRISON SEX, AND PRISON ECONOMY ARE EXAMINED. THREE PRINCIPLE TYPES OF PRISON HUSTLING ARE REVIEWED: THE ENTREPENEURIAL CLIQUE, THE INMATE 'MERCHANTS', AND THE WOMEN'S ECONOMIC SYSTEM OF PRISON 'FAMILIES'. THE DIFFERENCES IN PRISON CULTURES OF MEN AND WOMEN ARE DISCUSSED, AND IMPLICATIONS OF THESE ECONOMIC SYSTEMS ARE EXAMINED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED)