True / False
1. Rehabilitation was the primary goal in the traditional prison of the big-house era.
a. True
b. False
2. Contemporary prisoners are more likely to come from urban areas and to have been convicted of drug offenses than
prisoners in the past.
a. True
b. False
3. Racial conflict is only a minor problem in most U.S. prisons.
a. True
b. False
4. There has been a major increase in the number of African Americans sentenced to prison in the past 30 years.
a. True
b. False
5. The primary purpose of all prisons is maintaining secure custody of offenders.
a. True
b. False
6. Prison wardens can select which inmates end up in their institution.
a. True
b. False
7. Correctional officers exercise unlimited power over prisoners.
a. True
b. False
8. Correctional officers can gain cooperation from prisoners through rewards as well as punishments.
a. True
b. False
9. Superiors expect correctional officers to achieve institutional goals even though the officers have few resources or
punishments at their disposal.
a. True
b. False
10. While inmates are most likely to be African American, officers are most likely to be white.
a. True
b. False
11. In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of elderly prisoners over the age of 50 in the United States.
a. True
b. False
12. More mentally ill persons are in state hospitals than in prisons and jails.
a. True
b. False
13. Prisoners serve shorter sentences in the United States in comparison to other Western nations.
a. True
b. False
14. Most inmates serve their terms in isolation cells.
a. True
b. False
15. “Jailing” is a term used to describe inmates who try to take advantage of prison programs to better themselves.
a. True
b. False
16. Nearly half of all inmates in the U.S. prison population are women.
a. True
b. False
17. Female prisoners often form pseudo-families.
a. True
b. False
18. Male prisoners are more likely than female prisoners to have been convicted of a violent offense.
a. True
b. False
19. Male correctional officers cannot work in women’s prisons.
a. True
b. False
20. State legislators always support increases in funding for educational programs in the prison system because of their
success in reducing recidivism.
a. True
b. False
21. Prisoners can receive federal funding for postsecondary education.
a. True
b. False
22. The classification of inmates and assignment to various prison programs is always tailored to serve the needs of the
individual inmate.
a. True
b. False
23. Given adequate financial resources, most experts believe that prisons should include programs that improve the lives
of inmates such as vocational training, remedial education, and work opportunities.
a. True
b. False
24. Gangs based upon race and ethnicity have become a serious problem in the prison system.
a. True
b. False
25. The architectural design of a prison can influence the nature of interactions, including opportunities for violence.
a. True
b. False
26. Rehabilitation is a model of incarceration that emphasizes security, discipline, and order.
a. True
b. False
27. In terms of how prisons are organized, function, and staffed, it would be fair to say they incorporate aspects of
the military.
a. True
b. False
28. Professional personnel such as teachers, clinicians, and industry supervisors usually are not a part of prisons
today.
a. True
b. False
29. Correctional personnel may use force in the prevention of an escape.
a. True
b. False
Multiple Choice
30. Which of the following statements concerning the history of American correctional institutions is TRUE?
a. Correctional institutions in the United States have remained fairly similar across time and place.
b. Fictional depictions of prisons have been relatively accurate.
c. Counselors and teachers have always been a major part of prison life.
d. It was common in the south for prisoners to work outside as farm laborers.
e. Prisoners of the past were mostly drawn from the world of organized crime.
31. Which of the following statements regarding the American prison population during the last 30 years is TRUE?
a. There has been a decrease in the number of African Americans.
b. There has been a decrease in the number of Hispanics.
c. There has been no change in the number of Hispanics.
d. There has been an increase in the number of both African Americans and Hispanics.
e. None of the above.
32. Which of the following is NOT one of the problems confronting the modern prison system in America?
a. overcrowding
b. legal issues
c. racial conflicts
d. limited resources
e. overstaffing
33. The model of corrections which emphasizes security, discipline, and order is the:
a. custodial model.
b. rehabilitation model.
c. reintegration model.
d. family model.
e. community model.
34. The model of corrections that emphasizes treatment programs to help prisoners address the personal programs and
issues that led them to commit crimes is the
a. custodial model
b. rehabilitation model
c. reintegration model
d. family model
e. community model
35. The model of corrections which emphasizes maintaining the offender’s ties to the family and community as a method
of reform is called the:
a. custodial model.
b. rehabilitation model.
c. reintegration model.
d. family model.
e. community model.
36. Which of the following statements about prison managers is TRUE?
a. Prison managers have complete control over when their clients will be released.
b. Prison managers rely on clients to do much of the institutional maintenance work.
c. Prison managers select their clients.
d. Prison managers can control their clients’ behavior.
e. Prison managers have little training.
37. Which of the following prison staff are the most numerous?
a. wardens b. corrections officers
c. investigators d. counselors
e. educators
38. Which of the following statements concerning the authority of prison officials is TRUE?
a. The authority of prison officials is unlimited.
b. The authority of prison officials is limited.
c. Prison officials have no authority per se, but must abide strictly by procedural guidelines.
d. The authority of prison officials is limited in state prisons, but unlimited in federal prisons
e. The authority of prison officials is limited in federal prisons, but unlimited in state prisons.
39. According to John DiIulio, a good prison is one that “provides as much order, amenity, and ___________ as possible,
given the human and financial resources”:
a. punishment
b. retribution
c. service
d. rehabilitation
e. authority
40. A characteristic of a well run prison includes anything that enhances the comfort of the inmates, such as good food,
clean cells, and recreational opportunities, which are referred to as:
a. order.
b. amenities.
c. service.
d. protection.
e. opportunity.
41. Which of the following is NOT one of the four factors that make governing prisons different from administering other
public institutions?
a. the effects of total power
b. the limitation on the rewards and punishment officials can use
c. the increase of rehabilitative programs and incentives
d. the co-optation of correctional officers through exchange relationships
e. the strength of inmate leadership
42. The problems associated with total power, rewards and punishments, exchange relationships, and inmate leadership:
a. exist in only a few prisons.
b. exist only in state prisons.
c. exist only in federal prisons.
d. make prisons easier to govern than other institutions.
e. make prisons more difficult to govern than other institutions.
43. Which of the following rewards would an inmate new to the prison be expected to earn for good behavior?
a. furloughs
b. work release
c. a favorable job assignment
d. transfer to a halfway house
e. an educational release program
44. Prisons can be governed, violence minimized, and services provided to the inmates if correctional executives and
wardens exhibit:
a. experience.
b. time management.
c. concern.
d. leadership.
e. middle managers.
45. Correctional officer’s roles have changed dramatically. They are expected to counsel, supervise, protect, and:
a. process the inmates.
b. educate the inmates.
c. organize the inmates.
d. develop the inmates.
e. legalize the inmates.
46. Some states are facing a shortage of corrections officers. One reason for this is:
a. high unemployment rates.
b. the increase in prison populations.
c. shorter prison sentences for drug offenders.
d. greater education requirements for corrections officers.
e. more prisons built in urban areas.
47. Studies have shown that which of the following is a major motivation for becoming a corrections officer?
a. enjoyment of working with prisoners
b. a desire to aid in the rehabilitation process
c. a desire to use violence on the job
d. a desire for a secure civil service job
e. a desire for high pay and pleasant working conditions
48. Average pay for correctional officers in southern, rural states is:
a. $22,000
b. $25,000
c. $28,000
d. $30,000
e. $32,000
49. Correctional administrators have made efforts to recruits females and minorities. Approximately what percentage of
corrections employees are minorities?
a. 25
b. 30
c. 35
d. 40
e. 45
50. Which of the following would NOT be considered a part of classroom training for correctional officers?
a. report writing
b. arrest procedures
c. communicable diseases
d. inmate classification
e. self-defense
51. In which of the following situations is the use of force by a corrections officer against an inmate NOT allowed?
a. He is trying to prevent an inmate from punching him.
b. She is trying to prevent an inmate from passing drugs to another inmate.
c. He discovers a group of inmates trying to escape.
d. She is trying to protect an inmate from being assaulted by another.
e. He has encountered an inmate who is disrespectful.
52. Research conducted by the Bureau of Justice statistics has found that most prisoners are:
a. young minority males with less than a high school education.
b. older minority males with a high school education.
c. young minority females with less than a high school education.
d. older white males from organized crime groups.
e. older white males who organized drug trafficking gangs.
53. Approximately what percentage of state inmates did NOT graduate from high school prior to their incarceration?
a. 25
b. 30
c. 40
d. 45
e. 50
54. This population of this type of offender has increased since the 1960s. Unfortunately, correctional officers are usually
unprepared to deal with which of the following groups?
a. HIV infected
b. geriatric
c. long term
d. mentally ill
e. juvenile
55. The set of rules and values that develop within the prison social system and guide prisoners’ behavior is called:
a. jailing.
b. the inmate code.
c. gleaning.
d. machismo.
e. the prisoners’ law.
56. These inmates will most likely be alienated from the rest of the population and targeted for abuse because they have
violated the inmate code:
a. punk
b. wolf
c. hack
d. screw
e. dude
57. Prisoners who view their prison term as a brief, inevitable break in their criminal careers and simply a cost of doing
business are:
a. gleaning.
b. jailing.
c. living by the inmate code.
d. doing time.
e. disorganized criminals.
58. Inmates with low intelligence who are afflicted with psychological or physical disabilities are referred to as:
a. challenged inmates.
b. bottom feeders.
c. gleaners.
d. jailers.
e. disorganized criminals.
59. Which of the following is NOT considered one of the desired goods and services of prison life?
a. food
b. freedom
c. sex
d. drugs
e. preferred living conditions
60. The standard currency in the prison economy has traditionally been:
a. money.
b. soap.
c. sex.
d. cigarettes.
e. drugs.
61. Prisoner administrators are wary of the prison economy because:
a. inmate transactions hurt business at the prison store.
b. the prices charged for goods might not be fair.
c. prisoners steal items from the prison and may fight in disputes about transactions.
d. some prisoners are not allowed to participate.
e. prison officials do not want prisoners to have any amenities.
62. Which of the following statements concerning the differences between men’s and women’s prisons is TRUE?
a. Women’s prisons have a more highly developed hidden economy.
b. Female inmates face more violence and physical confrontations.
c. Female inmates are more committed to the inmate code.
d. Women’s prisons are generally smaller.
e. Women’s prisons are more security-conscious.
63. The increased number of women in prison has significantly affected which of the following?
a. delivery of programs
b. housing conditions
c. medical care
d. staffing
e. all of these
64. A primary feature of the “the mix” is anything for which one can lose:
a. earned time.
b. good time.
c. family time.
d. probation time.
e. parole time.
65. A major difference between male and female prisons includes:
a. interpersonal relationships.
b. staff relationships.
c. domestic relationships.
d. psychiatric relationships.
66. The small size of women’s prisons and the relatively small number of women prisoners has contributed to:
a. a lack of resources devoted to programs and rehabilitation.
b. a culture dominated by gangs.
c. a steady increase in prison violence.
d. the creation of “wall–less” prisons.
e. careful separation of violent and nonviolent offenders.
67. Which of the following job training programs is least likely to be found in a women’s prison?
a. cosmetology
b. food service
c. electronics repair
d. housekeeping
e. sewing
68. Which of the following statements concerning prison programs is TRUE?
a. They are readily available to prisoners.
b. Legislators today are financially supportive of prisoner programs.
c. More programs tend to increase hostilities in prisons.
d. Classification of prisoners and assignment to various programs are often based on the needs of the institution.
e. Few inmates are interested in becoming involved in programs.