Using Structural Equations to Model the Relationships between Procedural Justice, Risky Lifestyles, and Violent Inmate Misconduct.

Jaeyong Choi,Julak Lee,Glen A Ishoy

doi:10.3390/ijerph17217927

Abstract

Prior research has consistently shown that perceptions of procedural justice promote individuals’ compliance with the law. Several studies have also identified mechanisms that explain the association between perceptions of procedural justice and compliance (e.g., social identity). However, the potential role of risky behaviors as a mediator of the association between procedural justice and compliance remains unexplored. This study examined whether risky behaviors can mediate the relationship between procedural justice and violent inmate misconduct. Data for this study were derived from a sample of 986 incarcerated felons in South Korea. The present study employed structural equation modeling to test how risky lifestyles mediate the association between procedural justice and violent misconduct. The results showed that procedural justice reduced violent inmate misconduct. Additionally, the mediation hypothesis received partial support: the direct effect of procedural justice on violent misconduct was partially mediated by involvement in risky activities. Taken together, the results highlight the importance of the interrelationship between procedural justice, risky lifestyles, and violent misconduct in a prison setting.

Highlights

It is well documented that the impact of procedural justice can be more effective than a deterrence-based model of regulation in terms of encouraging citizens to obey the law and its legal agents [1,2,3,4,5]
Procedural justice was moderately correlated with risky lifestyles and violent misconduct: correlations between procedural justice and violent misconduct (r = −0.232, p < 0.001) and between procedural justice and risky lifestyles (r = −0.218, p < 0.001)
The findings suggested that procedural justice affected violent misconduct not just directly and indirectly via opportunities created from risky lifestyles in prison settings

Summary

Introduction

It is well documented that the impact of procedural justice can be more effective than a deterrence-based model of regulation in terms of encouraging citizens to obey the law and its legal agents [1,2,3,4,5]. Some researchers emphasized the role of negative emotions (e.g., anger) in linking procedural injustice to noncompliance, based on the equity theory [16]. This perspective posits that people can be motivated to become noncompliant with authorities’ rules when they perceive that they are being treated unfairly because they want to engage in retaliatory behavior to restore equity [17]

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion