Prisonization is usually described as the process of assimilating a wrong doer into an inmate society which is usually characterized by the adoption of particular values, norms and the beliefs that later shape an inmate’s worldview ( Pierce, 2014) . Although many of the prisoners begin their prison life experience with just a few values which support their criminal behavior, they undergo a socialization experience while in prison and this leads to a much greater acceptance to the values of prisonization. Through prisonization process, the inmates develop an informal inmate code from the institutional feature of the prison and also the individual characteristics of the fellow inmates.
With each passing day, the level of prisonization has been increasing and the government has come with methods that can be used to positively impact prisoners and also to reduce the effect of prisonization. The government is playing a major role in ensuring many ex-offenders will not struggle to reintegrate in their previous communities and that they don’t face significant trouble in securing employment. This ensures that the ex-offender do not return back to prison after a few years because of embracing criminal activities after being rejected by their previous communities ( Kerley, 2018).
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Many prisons are now offering education facilities to the inmates since most of the inmates face prisonization with educational deficits and they really benefit from education. The basic education programs in prisons have been highly influenced by the mandatory education laws which both the federal levels and the state requires the prisoners to attain below a certain threshold after taking a standardized test while in prison. After imprisonment, it has been discovered that the inmates who had acquired education during their prisonization process have a 13% higher chance of obtaining employment as compared to their inmates who didn’t participate in the education system. This ensures that prisonization level reduces as the number of people returning back to prison reduces ( Bondeson, & Bondeson, 2017).
In cases where the offender was involved in drug abuse which led them to law breaking, the offenders should be allowed to participate in a prison-based drug treatment program. This helps the inmates involved in drug and substance abuse to recover from the situation and also influences a change in behavior. Although most of the officers working in the prison-based drug treatment are often harsh on the offenders and end up lowering the motivation of the offenders and hence making the recovery program less effective. Developing a positive approach towards the offenders helps in creating better inmates and better ex-offenders to the society.
The use of project BRITE (Behavior Reinforcement to Increase Treatment Engagement) has also played a major part in impacting positive behaviors among the inmates. The inmates are required to participate in regularly scheduled group meetings and also supervised programs and activities within the institution. The programs ensure that the inmates engage in behaviors that facilitate in creating character among the inmates. The development of a positive character helps in improving the behavior of an inmate and later a better ex-offender in the community. The positive character helps the person to be integrated into the community and also increase the chance of securing employment after prison ( Farrell, 2011) .
Some prisons have also incorporated some workgroups where some inmates can work together. This has played a major role in helping some of the prisoners to learn the power of unity and also the importance of a community ( Hanser, & Gomila, 2015) . This helps them in creating a connection to their previous community as they are able to learn how to positively co-relate with people and also importance of developing a healthy relationship in the community. After prison they are able to positively live and participate in the development of the community hence reducing the rate of them heading back to prison and in return reducing prisonization.
References
Kerley, K. R. (2018). Finding freedom in confinement: The role of religion in prison life. Santa Barbara
Hanser, R. D., & Gomila, M. (2015). Multiculturalism and the criminal justice system . Pearson
Pierce, D. (2014). Prison Ministry: Hope Behind the Wall . Hoboken: Taylor and Francis.
Bondeson, U., & Bondeson, U. (2017). Prisoners in prison societies . Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon
Farrell, S. M. (2011). The effects of prison programs on prisoner adjustment . Irvine, Calif: University of California, Irvine.
