NCJ Number
85841
Date Published
1981
Length
18 pages
Annotation
A literature review examines evaluation results regarding the impact of coed adult prisons (cocorrections), and strategies are suggested for strengthening evaluation studies in this area.
Abstract
The general goal of cocorrections is to provide a more normal relational environment where inmates can evaluate their feelings about themselves and others and develop in a more positive way while in prison. The research that purports to examine the impact of cocorrections is of two general types: ethnographic study and recidivism research. Most of the research has consisted of ethnographic study, exclusively or substantially descriptive or generally qualitative. These studies have viewed cocorrections as one variable in the institutional environment. Overall, the ethnographic literature yields few findings on the impact of cocorrections, since such studies do not purport to answer questions of impact but rather of process. These studies have suggested themes or issues that should be included in a comprehensive impact evaluation and have raised policy questions relevant to operational models of cocorrections. More ethnographic research on cocorrections is needed, especially comparative and partnership ethnographies, before making a final judgment about the quality of life in a cocorrectional setting. The ethnographic research to date does suggest, however, that cocorrections provides a more humane prison environment than unisex prisons. All the available recidivism data on cocorrections suggest that incarceration in a coed institution has the potential of reducing adjustment problems on release; however, the data do not convincingly demonstrate the effect of the coed experience on postrelease behavior. Random assignment to experimental and control groups is needed for more reliable evaluation, and comparable definitions of recidivism must be used across studies if findings are to be useful. Forty-nine notes are listed.