How Do Prisons Affect Our Society

Prisons have such a major affect in our society today. Prisons are suppose to be the location we send our criminals to pay for their actions toward society. Many people have argued the goal of these prisons. To some the goal of prisons is to punish the criminals for the actions they committed. To others the goal of prison is to rehabilitate the offenders and allow them to change to become socially acceptable.
Corrections has been a key aspect of civilization since its integration to society. In our modern age, the U.S prison system has grown and it supervises six times more people than it did in 1974 (Clear, Cole, Reisig & Pestrosino, 2011). This change has been caused by changes in punishment given out since 1972, and not due to a change
of crimes rates. Corrections is the variety of programs, services, facilities and organizations responsible for the management of individuals who have been accused or convicted of criminal offenses. Corrections also helps define the limits of behavior so that everyone in the community understands what is permissible (Clear, Cole, Reisig & Pestrosino, 2011).
The correctional system is composed of both large and small organizations administered by various levels of government and private sector (Clear, Cole, Reisig & Pestrosino, 2011). Corrections consist of many subunits. Institutional corrections includes prisons and jails and it confines people who have been sentenced by the courts. Community corrections supervises people who either awaiting trial or have been sentence by the court but are living in the community. There are also private organizations that provide various services to people under correctional authority (Clear, Cole, Reisig & Pestrosino, 2011).
In order to have corrections, there must be facilities where inmates go to “rehabilitate”, these are called penitentiaries. The main goals of these facilities are: To be a secure and sanitary building, have systematic inspections to make sure inmates followed rules, abolish fees charged to offenders for food and have a reformatory regime (Clear, Cole, Reisig & Pestrosino, 2011).These buildings are used to put together inmates and allowed them the change and make them learn and understand what they’re wrong doing was. They lose the power they once had while committing the crime. In the eyes of the great Emile Durkheim, punishment was fundamental to society which encapsulates and reinforces its values (Siegal, 2010). Durkheim insisted that it was necessary for a shared ideology to reflect the current conditions of society and that industrialization had promoted novel values such as freedom, compassion and reason (Siegal, 2010). Durkheim identified punishment as the key to developing a cohesive ideology (Garland, 1990). Crimes are not universal and originate as societies ‘progress’; no crime is predetermined and only becomes so because it opposes the ‘conscience collective’. Thus for Durkheim crime plays an important role in society by introducing new beliefs and in turn allowing progress. He argues that a certain rate of crime is healthy for society to function as it helps to create social cohesion (Valier, 2002). There are many rehabilitation programs currently being implemented in prison. One of them is probation and parole supervision. Probation is the rehabilitative model which allows offenders to be placed on community supervision as a substitute for incarceration. Parole on the other hand, is a system where inmates are conditionally released to community supervision after serving a prison term. Parolees can be re-incarcerated if they violate the conditions of their parole. Research shows that in 2006, over 5 million adult men and women (4,237,000 were on probation and 498,200 were on parole) were under Federal, State and local probation or parole jurisdiction (Thibault et al, 2011).
It may appear that the probation and parole is being offered to a large number of inmates. Numbers however lie. It is worth noting herein that considering this number there is only 1.8% growth in the probation and parole population. According to the US Department of Justice, the average is 2.2% since 1995. If the average of growth is only 2.2% and for 2006 there was a significant reduction in the number of inmates who availed of probation and parole, this only means that majority of inmates in the United States are still languishing in jail despite the commission of petty crimes and offenses (Thibault et al, 2011). Parole and Probation programs however should be closely monitored by the probation and parole officers. These officers have the responsibility of making recommendations whether probation and parole should be granted. In this situation it is very important that close study must be made by them before they submit their recommendation. Also, even after their recommendation they must develop a system by which they will be able to monitor the activities of these
inmates. One of the cornerstones of the rehabilitation model is for the inmate to realize prison is not the end of his life. It should not be seen as a hopeless situation but rather is a temporary condition and that they will soon regain their freedom. One of the programs that can be utilized to help in the rehabilitation of the inmate is the livelihood programs. Thus, inmates are taught the skills necessary for carpentry, painting, and handicraft. Livelihood programs inside prison are recognized and are designed to “offset the cost of incarceration” (Frederick W. Derrick, 2004, p.2). It is even seen as an advantage for taxpayers since thru these programs the prison facilities can be improved without the help of money from taxpayers. The most important reason, however, for the livelihood programs is for them to be exposed to useful activities while inside prison. In addition, the money they may earn while inside the prison can be utilized to support the needs of the family. It is however sad to say that the livelihood program is being criticized by some sectors of the society. They say that because of the cheap labor costs majority of the manufacturing companies have shifted to prison labor as producers of their goods. As a result, those people who make an honest living outside prisons are being left unemployed because they could not compete with the rates being offered to inmates. It is suggested therefore that in the administration of livelihood programs the inmates must actually be able to learn different skills. One of these skills is to provide the inmates with computer skills which is an important skill that inmates can learn while in prison. Giving them sufficient skills will expand their potentials for getting a job. More skills will mean that they have greater chances of getting work which could also mean that they have lesser reason for committing crimes. Socrates once said that one of the reasons why people do evil is because of ignorance. Ignorance is therefore the enemy. Perhaps, it is also because of ignorance or lack of a better option or choice that majority of the inmates have committed crime. Thus, part of the rehabilitation model is to teach the inmates to read and write. This program offers the advantage of making the inmates preoccupied and provides them with sufficient tools so that when they are finally released they have additional tools that they can use to compete in the labor market. Counseling program is also one of the most important part of the rehabilitation model. The movie “Hancock” described what happens during a counseling session. Will Smith, who portrayed the character of John Hancock, joined the counseling session together with his fellow inmates. Unlike one-to-one session with a psychologist, counseling sessions in prison are conducted by grouping inmates. Every member of this group is encouraged to speak and to express his thoughts. It may appear that this is senseless but for inmates learning to express their emotions and to release their anger will help them avoid engaging in violent behavior. Over the past couple of years the number of female offenders has increased drastically all over the world. One of the main reasons why the population of women offenders is increasing would be drug related offenses. The law has become more punitive toward female offenders but has also found that female offenders need different treatment than males. Women usually resort to drug use because of domestic violence or mental illness; however, drug issues also result in diseases or other complications that male prisons do not have to worry about. Therefore, correctional facilities need to find solutions not just to stop the addiction but to get to the core of the issue which led to drug abuse.
Recent studies show that the female population in the criminal justice system has increased 757% between 1977 and 2004 (Frost, Green, & Pranis, 2006). During the beginning of the War on Drugs an increased attention flourished and created consequences for women users. Many of the women within the criminal justice system already had drug issues; therefore, after the beginning of the war on drugs with population of women offenders increased. This led to the increasing need to create programs that targeted arrestees and women who were already incarcerated with drug related issues. The reason why it is important to target or address this issue is because there are underlying issues under the drug use, such as mental issues, trauma, and disease (Staton-Tindall, 2007). Rehabilitation is not always changing a person in order to allow them to come out to society and work, in some cases its changing a persons habit in order for them to progress as a human being and vanquishing an addiction or actyivity that landed them in Jail/prison in the first place.
According to Michele Staton-Tindall (2007), women offenders experience various mental health issues, with the most common being depression and anxiety. The treatment granted within state and federal prisons for mental health issues are prescribed medications for psychological or emotional problems (Staton-Tindall, 2007). However, even though they are being medically treated for these issues studies show that women in drug treatment programs tend to have co-occurring mental health issues. For example the women may experience higher levels of psychological distress, increased incidence of trauma and abuse, and propensity for diagnosable disorders including post-traumatic stress disorder (Staton-Tindall, 2007).
Therefore this treatment would be used for women that have histories of victimization; a study was done where half of a sample reported having been sexually abused and nearly three-quarters reported being physically abused within their lifetime (Staton-Tindall, 2007).
According to the National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (2012), the U.S adopted programs such as, The Helping Women Recover and Beyond Trauma programs, which was created to treat substance abuse and trauma. It was designed as a healing journey for women within the criminal justice system or correctional setting who have co-occurring trauma histories (NREPP, 2012). According to the NREPP (2012) the program was divided into two conjoined intervention program or individual, stand-alone treatment. The goal of the intervention for the women is to reduce substance use and encourage enrollment in voluntary after-care treatment while on parole, and hopefully reduce the possibility of reincarceration (NREPP, 2012).
The trauma-informed treatments are sessions in which the women are counseled by staff in a group setting of about 8-12, in a nonconfrontational and nonhierarchical manner (NREPP, 2012). Treatments are run by counselors that try to use strength-based approaches to teach coping skills and how to develop and identify healthy relationships and positive interpersonal support (NREPP, 2012).
The Helping Women Recover sessions use cognitive behavioral skill trainings, meditation, experimental therapies (such as imagery and art therapy) and relational techniques (NREPP, 2012). This intervention goes on for about an hour and a half per session and occurs once or twice a week. Overall, the program as a whole goes on for about 17 sessions and revolves around four domains: (1) Self, (2) Relationship/Support System, (3) Sexuality, and (4) Spirituality (NREPP, 2012). The Beyond Trauma program consists of 11 sessions that revolves around three domains: (1) violence, Abuse, and Trauma, (2) Impact of Trauma, and (3) Healing from Trauma (NREPP, 2012, p.1)
In Germany some of the most common communicable diseases due to drug use are HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, STDs, or tuberculosis (Stoever, 2002). According to Stoever (2002), the spread of communicable diseases like HIV/AIDS, within the prison system led agencies like WHO (World Health Organization) to develop guidelines to resolve this issue. The guidelines suggested that the same strategy found in the community should also be applied in prisons (Stoever, 2002). According to Stoever (2002), in certain countries where bleach or another viricidal agent are available to drug users in the community whose method of choice is injection, along with instructions on cleaning injection equipment.
Therefore the WHO began methadone treatments in Germany for offenders who participated in methadone treatment prior to their imprisonment or those who applied for participation (Stoever, 2002). According to Stoever (2002), methadone programs attract and retain more drug users than any other treatment approach in Germany. The goal of this program is to reduce the inmate’s craving for opiates, reduce the risks of transmission of infectious diseases, provide opportunities for medical contacts and the treatment of diseases, reduce the number of crimes committed in prison, and provide grounds for participation in working and skill training (Stoever, 2002).
However, in other female prisons the goal of rehabilitation is approached differently, by trying to reduce drug use through prevention of drugs in the prison. They have come up with demand reduction programs which have a purpose of getting these females to give up their addiction through a drug free program (Stoever, 2002). The goal of this program is to prepare the offender for a crime-free life through abstinence (Stoever, 2002).
In conclusion, Prisons are a life changing structure that can either make or break an individual. In prisons there are many rehabilitative methods that help change an individual. The purpose of this, is to make these former offenders new civilians that can help society and no longer hurt them. Though these methods aren 't bullet proof and have many flaws, they do help many individuals.

Works Cited
Derrick, F.
W., Scott, C. E., Hutson, T., Prison Labor Effects on the Unskilled Labor Market, American Economist, XLVII, 2, (2004), p. 74-81.
Frost, N. A., Greene, J., & Pranis, K. (2006). Hard hit: The growth in the imprisonment of women, 1977-2004. Institute on Women & Criminal Justice: The Punitiveness Report.
Garland, D. (1990) Punishment and Modern Society: A Study in Social Theory. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
NREPP. SAMHSA, (2012). Helping women recover and beyond trauma. Retrieved from SAMHSA 's National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices website: http://www.nrepp.samhsa.gov/ViewIntervention.aspx?id=181
. R. Clear, G. F. Cole, M. D. Reisig and C. Petrosino. (1st Ed). (2011). American Corrections in Brief. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Siegal, L. J. (2010). Criminology, The Core. Lowell: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Staton-Tindall, M., (2007). Female offender drug use and related issues. Women’s Health Issues.
Stoever, Heino. (2002). Journal of Drug Issues, Spring2002, Vol. 32 Issue 2, p573-595.
Thibault, Edward A., Lawrence M. Lynch, and R. Bruce McBride. (2011) Proactive Police Management, 8th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall
Valier, C. (2002) Theories of Crime and Punishment. Harlow: Pearson Education
Ltd.