The Perceptions of Penitentiary Inmates and Staff

Abstract

Summary This study examined inmate perceptions of the value of membership of penitentiary residential unit management committees for the rehabilitation of inmates. The degree of favorableness of inmate perceptions of the committees was treated as a function of their participation in a number of other penitentiary programs. It was found that categorization of inmates in this way was useful for identifying and explaining differences in their perceptions of the utility of membership of the residential committees for rehabilitation. It was also found that in the case of three programs—group therapy, playing bridge, and individual counselling of inmates by classification officers —participants had significantly more favorable perceptions of residential committees than nonparticipants. A comparison of the perceptions of residential committees by these inmate samples and staff disclosed that only participation in counselling by classification officers and playing bridge resulted in inmates' perception of the com...