Investigating Prison Masculinities and the Prediction of of Maladaptive Prison Behaviors

• In Event: Inmate Violence and Misconduct

Abstract

In male prison subcultures, the potential for aggressive and infractionary behaviors represents a notable concern for inmates, staff, and administration alike. Qualitative corrections scholarship has frequently identified the use of aggressive, dominant, and rule-breaking behaviors as a hypermasculine means of “doing gender” in prison contexts. However, the constituent links between hypermasculinity and prison behaviors have not yet been explored through quantitative analyses. The current study seeks to advance our understandings of the causal relationships between inmate hypermasculinity and maladaptive prison behaviors using quantitative analytical methods. Specifically, this research examines the efficacy of self-report hypermasculinity measures in predicting inmate violence, aggression, and rule infractions in the greater Boston area. Results are analyzed using multivariate regression methods; avenues for future research and policy implications are discussed.

Author

• Beck M. Strah, Northeastern University