Gender Differences in the Determinants of Prison Rule Violations

• Author: Hung-En Sung,Katarzyna Celinska
• Published date: 01 June 2014
• DOI: 10.1177/0032885514524882
• Date: 01 June 2014
• Subject Matter: Articles

The Prison Journal

2014, Vol. 94(2) 220 –241

© 2014 SAGE Publications

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DOI: 10.1177/0032885514524882

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Article

Gender Differences in

the Determinants of

Prison Rule Violations

Katarzyna Celinska1 and Hung-En Sung2

Abstract

This article addresses gender differences in the extent and explanation of

inmate misconduct. The study employs nationally representative prisoner

survey data to assess gender-specific explanations of prison rule violations.

The gender-specific factors include prior victimization, diagnosed mental

disorders, and the amount of inmate contact with their families via visits and

phone calls. Logistic regression models support gender-specific explanations

of inmate misconduct but also identify other factors of general importance.

The policy implications of gendered pathways in prison misconduct are

discussed.

Keywords

female inmates, prison rule violations, gender differences

Introduction

This article addresses the issue of gender differences in the determinants of

inmate misconduct. In 2012, American federal and state correctional

1Department of Law, Police Science and Criminal Justice Administration, John Jay College of

Criminal Justice, New York, NYC, USA

2Department of Criminal Justice, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, New York, NYC, USA

Corresponding Author:

Katarzyna Celinska, PhD, Assistant Professor, John Jay College of Criminal Justice,

Department of Law, Police Science and Criminal Justice Administration, Haaran Hall, Rm.

422:32, 524 West 59th Street, New York City, NY 10019, USA.

Email: kcelinska@jjay.cuny.edu

524882TPJXXX10.1177/0032885514524882The Prison JournalCelinska and Sung

research-article2014

Celinska and Sung 221

institutions housed nearly 1.6 million prisoners (Glaze & Herberman, 2013).

Although inmate population growth has slowed in recent years, the manage-

ment of prisoners remains a formidable challenge. In addition, the growth of

female prisoners has outpaced that of male prisoners (West, 2010). National

data show that from 1990 to 2012, female incarceration increased by 130%,

compared with the male incarceration rate increase of 93% (Beck & Harrison,

2001; Glaze & Herberman, 2013). In 2012, there were 108,866 women in

state and federal prisons (Carson & Golinelli, 2012). Despite the growth in

women’s incarceration, few studies on adjustment and violence in prison

have included female inmates (Gover, Perez, & Jennings, 2008; Warren,

Hurt, Loper, & Chauhan, 2004). This is unfortunate in light of evidence of

differences in the origins of female and male criminality (Byrd & Davis,

2009; Glaze & Maruschak, 2009).

Using nationally representative subsamples of state and federal prisoners,

this research compares the determinants of male and female prison rule viola-

tion. Along with variables conventionally employed in models of adjustment

to prison, this study also includes gender-specific factors such as prior vic-

timization, the presence of mental disorders, and the amount of contact that

inmates have with their families and friends through visits and phone calls.

Identifying gender-specific determinants of prison rule violations can inform

efforts to improve women’s adjustment to prison.

Literature Review

Research on inmate misconduct has important implications for correctional

policy and practice (Jiang & Fisher-Giorlando, 2002). Prisoners’ misconduct

is an important indicator of inmates’ overall adjustment to prison life and it

helps determine prisoner classification (Cao, Zhao, & Van Dine, 1997;

Steiner & Wooldredge, 2009). Prison rule violations are costly with respect to

victim harm, disruption, and facility disorder as well as the physical and emo-

tional toll on prisoners, prison staff, and prisoners’ families (Jiang & Fisher-

Giorlando, 2002).

Prior studies have focused nearly exclusively on male inmates, explaining

prison behavior via importation and deprivation theories. This research has

identified a number of individual and institutional factors that impact prison-

ers’ adjustment and misconduct. While we do not test these theories, we inte-

grate them into gender-specific explanations to derive a more comprehensive

model.

The deprivation model of misconduct focuses on the impact of what Sykes

(1958) called “the pains of imprisonment.” This theory highlights aspects of

the prison environment and prisoners’ circumstances that sustain and