Revisiting the Special Sensitivity Hypothesis: The Prison Experience of White-Collar Inmates

Abstract

Despite recent increases in the use of incarceration for white-collar offenders, little is known about the prison experiences of these individuals or how they adjust to imprisonment. Although empirical evidence is lacking, a widespread view has prevailed that white-collar offenders have a “special sensitivity” to imprisonment—that they experience more pains and cope less well within the society of captives. Based on a sample of 366 federal prison inmates, we assessed the special sensitivity hypothesis. The analyses revealed that white-collar inmates are not more likely to experience negative prison adjustment. In some regards, white-collar inmates had fewer institutional problems and were more likely to cope with prison life successfully. Results thus call into question the merits of the special sensitivity hypothesis and are consistent with the view expressed earlier by Michael Benson and Francis Cullen that white-collar offenders may possess attributes and resources sufficient for their successful adaptation to life in prison.