Crowding in Jails

Abstract

The effect of housing density was examined in three different jails. High levels of density were associated with various negative psychological reactions. Social density (number of people in a housing unit) was a more important predictor of these effects than spatial density (space per person). Housing type did not affect illness complaint rate but some evidence was obtained for elevated blood pressure in highly dense housing when inmates were confined for large parts of the day. These results were related to previous research on crowding in prisons and other environments.