NCJ Number
138899
Journal
Howard Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 31 Issue: 3 Dated: (August 1992) Pages: 174-191
Date Published
1992
Length
18 pages
Annotation
Based on current developments in England/Wales, Canada, and the United States, this article identifies an international commercial corrections complex.
Abstract
The discussion begins with an overview of the ongoing correctional privatization debate. Although a number of scholars have broadened the topic to include social and economic contexts, political contexts, and privatization generally, several core facets have been overlooked, particularly the concept that corrections represents an international market. This article contends that this market is closely linked to various sections of the international military-industrial complex. The authors provide a brief, current description of corrections in England, Canada, and the United States. They describe relevant similarities and differences in the correctional systems and political contexts of these nations. Finally, the authors sketch the broad parameters of an international view of the influence of private interests on state-sanctioned punishment. The authors emphasize that the relationship between the United States and other nations is more complex than the mere imitation of U.S. proposals by England/Wales and Canada. At the center of contemporary international relationships are the roles of the United States in exporting incarceration and of the transnational corporations that profit from punishment. Further study will provide information on the details of the international complex. 18 notes and 48 references