Women in Orange: How Care Structures Adaptation Inside a Women's Prison

• In Event: Critical Prison Research

Abstract

Women's adaptation to living in prison is investigated using qualitative interviews with women incarcerated in Arizona. Beyond the extant theoretical frameworks of adaptation for people in prison, the data reveal the important role of giving and receiving care among women housed together across various security levels, indicating that gender socialization informs adaptations even in single-sex spaces like a prison. The provision of care packages including essential hygiene items, mentorship regarding the formal and informal rules of the prison, and nurturing relationship formation are examples of the care that structures life in this prison.

Author

• Cassandra Philippon, University of Central Florida