American Corrections: Concepts and Controversies
Second Edition
Learning Objectives
- To understand how prisons are different from jails and the basic characteristics of prisons, including their physical design.
- To grasp how and to what extent prisons function as part of the larger correctional system.
- To understand the basic facts of the state prison system versus the federal prison system.
- To gain basic fluency in prison demographics.
- To understand prison classification systems and risk levels.
- To grasp some of the extremes in the system such as crowding, the supermax, and isolation.
- To know about basic types of prisoner services and understand some of the challenges involved in delivering them.
- To gain a basic sense of the prison environment.