NCJ Number
198672
Journal
Journal of Offender Rehabilitation Volume: 35 Issue: 3/4 Dated: 2002 Pages: 35-58
Editor(s)
Thomas P. O'Connor,
Nathaniel J. Pallone
Date Published
2002
Length
24 pages
Annotation
This paper examines the practice of religion in the correctional environment and the reasons for religious involvement in the correctional environment.
Abstract
The influence of religion as a treatment alternative in the correctional setting is as old as the history of prisons. Today, the use of religion as a correctional program or treatment modality is commonplace in most correctional facilities across the United States. This study explored the reasons for religious involvement of inmates and suggests that the reasons were tied to whether the inmates were sincere or insincere in belief and practice. Sincere inmates were said to be more legitimate or genuine in their religious belief and practice and found religion to be a motivating factor for their lives. Conditions gained from religious practice included: motivation, direction, and meaning for life, hope for the future, peace of mind, positive self-esteem, and change in lifestyle. The insincere inmates were more likely to be involved in religion for manipulative purposes where their behavior did not reflect the rules or norms of any formal religion, regardless of their claim. The reasons for insincere religious involvement included: protection, inmate convergence, interaction with women volunteers, and access to prison resources. The data were derived from a 1-year long ethnographic study of two religious programs in two large male prisons located in the northeast United States. The majority of data were collected from a maximum-security prison with over 1,500 inmates, called for the sake of this study Western Prison. The second prison was called Eastern Prison. The research was conducted in two phases with two types of data. References