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CHAPTER 10
Incarceration
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After reading this chapter, students should be able to:
2. Discuss the goals of incarceration.
4. Discuss the factors that influence the classification of prisons.
5. Explain who is in prison.
LESSON PLAN
Correlated to PowerPoints
I. Links to the Past
Learning Objective 1: Explain how today’s prisons are linked to the past.
A. Most correctional facilities are still in rural areas in line with Quakers’ beliefs that
people who have committed a crime could be redeemed only if removed from city
distractions.
1. The 1940s and 1950s image of the “big house” is still imprinted on most
Americans’ minds: a walled prison with large, tiered cell blocks, a yard, shops,
2. The rehabilitative model was dominant during the 1960s and 1970s.
a. Treatment programs administered.
b. Priority still given to custody goals of security, discipline, and order.
B. During the past 50 years, the prison population has changed.
2. More incarcerated individuals come from urban areas.
4. Former street gangs regroup inside prisons and have raised levels of violence in
many institutions.
5. The rise of public employee unions has improved working conditions, safety
procedures, and training.
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Instructor’s Manual
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© 2019 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or
in part.
C. Current focus of corrections has shifted to crime control, which emphasizes the
importance of incarceration.
II. The Goals of Incarceration
Learning Objective 2: Discuss the goals of incarceration.
A. Three models of incarceration have predominated since the early 1940s.
1. Custodial model
a. Assumes people have been incarcerated for the purposes of
2. Rehabilitation model
a. Developed during the 1950s
3. Reintegration model
a. Recognizes that prison residents will eventually return to society
b. Emphasizes maintaining residents’ ties to family and community
What If Scenario
What if you had to remove one model of incarceration because of funding? Which would you
choose and why?
See Assignment 2
III. Organization for Incarceration
Learning Objective 3: Explain the organization of incarceration.
A. Prisons are operated by all 50 states and the federal government.
2. Regionally, 47 percent are in the South, 20 percent are in the Midwest, 18.5
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3. Generally, prisons house convicted individuals sentenced to more than one
year.
B. The Federal Bureau of Prisons
1. Jurisdiction of federal criminal law is restricted to crimes involving interstate
2. The federal prison population more than doubled during the 1980s due to the
3. Federal prisons house fewer individuals who have committed violent offenses
4. About 22 percent of federal incarcerated individuals are citizens of other
countries.
5. The Bureau of Prisons operates 122 confinement facilities, ranging from
6. The federal government does not have enough space to house most people
7. The federal system has enjoyed a good reputation and has been viewed as an
innovator in the field of corrections.
C. State Prison Systems
2. The executive branch of each state government administers its prisons.
4. Sentencing practices, legislative appropriations for corrections, and politics can
also affect incarceration rates.
5. States vary considerably in the number, size, type, and location of correctional
facilities.
See Assignment 4
IV. The Design and Classification of Prisons
Learning Objective 4: Discuss the factors that influence the classification of prisons.
A. Form follows function: the design of a structure should serve its purpose.
1. During the penitentiary era, institutions were to promote penance.
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© 2019 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or
in part.
2. When prison industry became the focus, a different design enhanced the
efficiency of workshops.
3. When punishment held sway, emphasis was on the fortress-like edifice that
ensures security.
4. During the rehabilitation era, new prisons were built in styles thought to
promote treatment goals.
B. Today’s Design: There are four basic models found in America’s prisons.
1. The Radial Design
2. The Telephone-Pole Design
3. The Courtyard Style
4. The Campus Style
a. Relatively small housing units scattered among shops, school, dining,
5. Today, prison construction is greatly influenced by cost.
Class Discussion/Activity
Assign students to a group and assign each group a particular prison design. Allow the students
to research this design, determining where it currently is used within your state and the pros/cons
to this particular design. Discuss this in class.
C. Location of Prisons
1. As in the past, most are located in rural areas.
a. Even though most prison residents come from cities and reintegration
has been the prime correctional goal, new institutions are still being built
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© 2019 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or
in part.
c. Many citizens believe that people convicted of serious offenses should
be incarcerated, but not in their community (NIMBY syndrome).
2. Some economically depressed areas have welcomed prisons to bring in jobs
and revitalize the local economy.
Media Tool
Visit http://correctionsproject.com/
o Prisons for Profit
o Ask students if they feel that privately-run fo-profit prisons are a good idea in the United
States. As a class, discuss why or why not.
D. The Classification of Prisons
1. State prisons for men usually are classified according to security level:
maximum, medium, and minimum. Plus, many states and the federal government
have facilities that exceed maximum-security standards, called “super-max.”
a. There are no national design or classification standards, so a maximum-
2. The Maximum-Security Prison
a. There are 355 such facilities in the United States that house about 38
3. The Medium-Security Prison
a. There are 438 in the United States, holding 43 percent of incarcerated
4. The Minimum-Security Prison
a. There are 926 facilities holding 19 percent of incarcerated individuals.
b. Residents are among the least violent convicted people.
Instructor’s Manual
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© 2019 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or
in part.
c. They lack tower guards and walls; some have chain-link fences.
Residents may live in dormitories or small private rooms.
d. The system relies on rehabilitation programs and offers residents
opportunities for education and work release.
E. Private Prisons
2. Corrections is a multibillion dollar government-funded enterprise that
purchases supplies, materials, and services from the private sector.
3. Many jurisdictions contract with private companies to furnish food and medical
services, educational and vocational training, and other services. Some hire
5. CoreCivic (formerly the Corrections Corporation of America) currently
manages 89 correctional centers offering all levels of security.
6. Practical and Ethical Issues
a. Differences in programming
b. Costs
i. Private entrepreneurs argue that they can build and run prisons at
least as effectively, safely, and humanely as any level of government
can, at a profit and a lower cost to taxpayers.
ii. Private prison corporations need to fill their cells in order to be
profitable.
c. Accountability
i. There are fears that the private corporations will press to maintain
high occupancy and will be interested in skimming off the best
inmates, leaving the troublesome ones to the public correctional
system.
ii. Should governments delegate social control functions to private,
profit-driven companies? Will those companies always act in the best
public interest?
7. Legal Issues
a. Liability of guards: The U.S. Supreme Court said that private prison
guards did not have legal protection under Section 1983 and are fully
liable for their actions when they violate a protected right.
Chapter 10: Incarceration
Media Tool
Visit https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/04/28/how-for-profit-prisons-
have-become-the-biggest-lobby-no-one-is-talking-about/?utm_term=.bb7c93c217ba
• How For-Profit Prisons Have Become the Biggest Lobby No One Is Talking About
• Discuss this type of prison system and how it has “taken over” both lobbying in DC and
in real-life prisons across the country.
Class Discussion/Activity
Assign students to read the overview of the use of private prisons presented by the Corrections
Project. (Available: http://www.correctionsproject.com/corrections/pris_priv.htm). Based on the
information provided, have students write an essay explaining who profits from privatization.
Class Discussion/Activity
Divide the class into two sections. Organize a classroom debate in which one side advocates for
private prisons and the other against them. They must address logistical and moral issues.
See Assignments 1, 3, and 5
V. Who Is in Prison?
Learning Objective 5: Explain who is in prison.
A. The age, education, and criminal history of the population of incarcerated individuals
influence how correctional institutions function.
B. Data on the characteristics of people in prison is limited (Figure 10.5).
2. Majority are members of minority groups.
3. About 25 percent of people on parole return to prison.
4. Four additional factors affect correctional operations:
C. The Elderly
1. An increasing number of individuals in prison are older than 55 and have
2. In the general population, special housing accommodations and work
assignment modifications should be made.
4. Preparation for release to community supervision or to hospice services require
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5. The costs of maintaining an elderly individual is much higher than a younger
one.
Media Tool
Visit http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130837434
o Elderly Population of Incarcerated Individuals
o Discuss this issue within the prison system. Ask students why this is likely to become a
much bigger issue across the country in the coming years and decades.
What If Scenario
What if a person developed AIDS in prison and was nearing the end of his life? Should he be
allowed to be released to die at home with his family?
B. People with Mental Illnesses
1. Mass closings of public hospitals for people with mental illnesses began in the
2. Community treatment only works if the drugs are taken and clinics and halfway
houses exist to assist people with mental illnesses.
4. With the expansion of prisons and greater emphasis on public order offenses,
arrest and incarceration have become the price many pay for their illness.
Media Tool
Visit https://nicic.gov/mentally-ill-persons-in-corrections
o Mentally Ill Inmate Population
o Discuss this issue within the prison system. Ask students to come up with ideas about
why there might be such a strong link between incarceration and mental illness.
Class Discussion/Activity
Ask students to discuss and locate information on incarcerated people who are elderly, mentally
ill, and have HIV/AIDS that are in your state’s current correctional facility. Discuss the
perspectives on medical of these people compared to students who do not currently have
healthcare.
C. Military Veterans
1. 130,000 veterans are currently serving time.
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2. Virtually all (98.9 percent) are men, and most are between the ages of 35 and
54 years.
3. They are also on average less educated and were previously incarcerated.
D. Individuals Serving Long-Term Sentences
1. Harsh sentencing policies of the last 30 years—three-strikes, mandatory
2. Long-term residents generally are not seen as control problems.
4. Each life sentence costs taxpayers an estimated $1 million.
6. Long-term incarcerated individuals are charged with less disciplinary
infractions that those serving short terms.
What If Scenario
What if an incarcerated person wanted to be placed in a correctional facility closer to his/her
family? Should that request be honored?
LECTURE NOTES
In general, prisons fascinate people. This chapter focuses on incarceration and is, therefore,
likely to be very interesting to students. Take advantage of their appetite for all things prison. It
is quite possible that some students took a corrections course thinking it would solely be about
The book starts by reviewing the purpose of corrections. In turn, this chapter explores the goals
of incarceration. Compare the two aims. Allow students to add to the goals named by the
authors. It is very useful for students to have a solid understanding as to how incarceration is
Instructor’s Manual
10
It is important to elaborate on the factors that influence the design and classification of prisons.
Juxtapose today’s designs with those of the early penitentiaries. This will help students see the
links to the past and perhaps illustrate what, if anything, has changed. Students should
An important section in this chapter is the one on private prisons. Since their advent in the 1970s,
questions have been raised as to whether private prisons are more cost-effective than public
prisons. Until recently, research on this question has been lacking. As states deal with severe
budgetary problems, the future of private prisons is uncertain. When teaching about prison
Due to the pervasive and particular portrayal of incarcerated individuals on television and in
movies, people often have an incorrect idea about just who is incarcerated and for what types of
KEY TERMS
Custodial model
A model of correctional institutions that emphasizes security, discipline, and order.
Rehabilitation model
A model of correctional institutions that emphasizes the provision of treatment programs
designed to reform the individual.
Reintegration model
Chapter 10: Incarceration
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Radial design
An architectural plan by which a prison is constructed in the form of a wheel, with “spokes”
radiating from a central core.
Telephone-pole design
An architectural plan for a prison calling for a long central corridor crossed at regular intervals
by structures containing the prison’s functional areas.
Campus style
An architectural design by which the functional units of a prison are individually housed in a
complex of buildings surrounded by a fence.
Maximum-security prison
Medium-security prison
A prison designed and organized to prevent escapes and violence, but in which restrictions on
residents and visitors are less rigid than in maximum-security facilities.
Minimum-security prison
A prison designed and organized to permit residents and visitors as much freedom as is
consistent with the concept of incarceration.
ASSIGNMENTS
1. Ask students to write an essay on the factors contributing to the aging prison population
2. Assign students in the class different states and have them research the crimes for which
3. Refer students to the Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics and have them summarize
4. Assign students to read the overview of the use of private prisons presented by the
Corrections Project.
(Available: http://www.correctionsproject.com/corrections/pris_priv.htm). Based on the
information provided, have students write an essay explaining who profits from
5. Research the cost of how much it is costing taxpayers in your state to house the elderly.
Refer to the issues associated with elderly residents and discuss the pros and cons to
continuing their incarceration until it is completed, regardless of whether they outlive
ANSWERS TO END-OF-CHAPTER DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Although the answers provided below will vary from student to student, the responses should
include at a minimum a discussion of the following key points.
1. Is the custodial model most appropriate for organizing prisons that operate at different security
levels? What model should be used to organize a minimum-security facility?
2. What are some of the strengths and weaknesses of various prison designs? Are some designs
better than others?
© 2019 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or
in part.
