NCJ Number
177007
Editor(s)
K C Haas,
G P Alpert
Date Published
1999
Length
647 pages
Annotation
This anthology has 42 presentations that address issues related to inmate characteristics, prison conditions, corrections issues in the courts, what works in rehabilitation, community corrections, and critical problems and issues in corrections.
Abstract
The presentations include essays and studies that have been published in books, research reports, and professional journals, as well as new material from several influential American criminologists. The latter original contributions offer the most recent theories and research findings in the field of corrections. The six selections in Part I provide an overview of the scope and structure of the U.S. correctional system in addressing the issues of who goes to prison and why. The six presentations of Part II describe the pains of imprisonment felt by those who are incarcerated, and Part III consists of seven selections that examine the impact of the judiciary on the correctional system and the prisoners. Seven writings in Part IV provide an up-to-date overview of the continuing debate over the effectiveness of correctional treatment programs. Another seven presentations in Part V explore the theory and practice of community-based corrections. Part VI, which was added in the second edition, now contains readings on nine problems and issues that are among the most pressing and troublesome in the field of corrections today. The first four articles in this section examine the problems involved in meeting the special needs of four offender types: mentally ill inmates, elderly prisoners, incarcerated adolescent females, and juvenile offenders with learning disabilities. The next two selections address how to prevent the spread of AIDS in U.S. prisons and the comparative effectiveness of the privatization of prisons. The final three papers analyze the costs and benefits of "get tough" policies in corrections. Chapter references