Examining the Fear of Victimization among Taiwanese Inmates

Abstract

Inmates have reported to have experienced the fear of victimization when they were incarcerated. Prior studies support the association among fear, victimization, and violence in correctional institutes. Research on prisoner’s fear of victimization has tended to focus mainly on either individual or structural factors, but rarely have both sources been examined simultaneously. Moreover, most of what is known about prison victimization and, in particular, inmates’ fear of victimization has emerged from studies among American and European prisoners. This study adds to this line of research by examining the fear of victimization in a large sample of Taiwanese inmates, using multi-level models that explore both individual and architectural factors of custodial institutions. Findings showed that both individual- and aggregate-level variables are important for explaining inmates’ fear of other inmates, whereas the aggregate-level variables are more important for understanding inmates’ fear of correctional officers. Findings also revealed that inmates with different characteristics perceive a distinct fear of victimization in different custody locations. More importantly, findings indicated several unique results within the Eastern context compared to the Western literature. Future research directions and policy implications have been made.