NCJ Number
89729
Journal
Journal of Orthomolecular Psychiatry Volume: 10 Issue: 3 Dated: (1981) Pages: 174-181
Date Published
1981
Length
8 pages
Annotation
In 1979, the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department (California) decided to test the 'tranquilizing' effects of pink in the county jail as part of a program to minimize the risk of injury to inmates and officers. Little overall difference in incident rates occurred.
Abstract
Incidence of aggressive officer-arrestee encounters was compared for the 12 months before and after changing the color of the county jail strip search room from pale blue to hot pink. This size room (13'4' by 15'6') is much larger than those other jail or prison holding rooms which have reported success in curbing aggressive behavior among inmates. Relative frequency of such incidents did decrease for the first month following the color change, but subsequently increased, reaching peak levels during the last half of the pink year. The initial decline is seen as an intrinsically interesting artifact of the intervention, itself indicative of an economical approach to reducing aggression in volatile detention situations. Figures, tables, and 23 references are included. (Author abstract modified)