Correctional officers' definitions of rape in male prisons (original) (raw)
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Sexuality in Correctional Facilities
2018
Same-sex relationships among the incarcerated are regarded to be an intensely neglected field of inquiry for scholars (Hensley and Tewksbury 2002). Yet, pervasive misconceptions have raised alarms among the public about tales of rampant inmate-on-inmate sexual victimization, and male and female inmates being forced into same-sex relations. These myths about the sexual behaviors of the incarcerated have further perpetuated folklores to be acquired by the public. Emerging research has uncovered the true reality about inmates' expressions of sexuality during their incarcerations. Coerced sexual behaviors do occur between both the male and female incarcerated populations, but so do consensual and bartered sexual acts between inmates, staff, and visitors (Hensley and Tewksbury 2002; Warren, Jackson, Loper, and Burnette 2010). In whole, there exist three forms of sexual interactions in correctional facilities: bartered sex, coerced sex, and consensual sex. Thus, the inmate subculture is not solely defined by coerced sexual encounters, but rather there are alternative forms of sexuality that inmates can express when incarcerated. Of note, due to the sensitive nature of the topic at hand, we decided to differentiate legal and personal consent. Hereafter, the term consensual will reflect legal consent, which is also a term frequently used by scholars and we will continue to honor their terminology use, whereas the use of the term willing will reflect personal consent. Sexual identity is one such expression that is rather fluid in the inmate subculture. Inmates may vacillate between identifying as heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual (Hensley, Tewksbury, and Koscheski 2002; Hensley, Tewksbury, and Wright 2001). Longer incarceration periods result in a greater likelihood to report same-sex sexual relations and/or self-identification as a homosexual (Hensley et al. 2002). Regardless of an inmate's sexual orientation, same-sex encounters can generate into meaningful relationships among inmates. Nevertheless, inmates still have a continued risk of being a victim of rape and/or sexual assault (Tewksbury and Connor 2014), most notably by persons that hold the institutional power of the correctional facility (Warren et al. 2010). However, contrary to popular belief, incidents of unwanted sexual encounters are rather rare occurrences in correctional facilities (Beck, Berzofsky, Caspar, and Krebs 2013). In response to public concerns, government bodies become involved in the study of sexual victimization reported by inmates. The passage of the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) in 2003 was a catalyst in the evolution of prison rape research that examined and dissected sexual expressions exhibited by inmates. Consequently, scholarly works have offered a grander perspective of the sexual lifestyle of male and female inmates that have operated inside the inmate subculture, and inmates' persistent issues with sexual victimization, especially from staff members. This chapter is separated into five sections. The historical aspects of prison sexuality are detailed in the first section. The second section entails a discussion of how scholars promoted
Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 2020
In 2003, Congress passed the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA). Although subsequent research to PREA has shed light on the prevalence and incidence of sexual violence in American prisons, few studies examine inmates' perceptions of rape and safety from rape in prison. Even less is known about how inmates' perceptions of rape influence mental health treatment-seeking behavior during incarceration. Using a sample of incarcerated men, this study adds to the limited body of research by examining the perceived fear of rape and mental health treatment-seeking behavior in two vulnerable prison populations-gay and bisexual inmates and inmates with a history of childhood sexual abuse. Compared with straight inmates, gay and bisexual inmates were approximately two times more likely to perceive that rape was a threat and three times more likely to voluntarily request mental health treatment in prison. Inmates with a history of childhood sexual abuse were over twice as likely to perceive the threat of rape and nearly four times
Document Title: The Culture of Prison Sexual Violence
2006
cultural themes • If a man believes he can be raped he’s already been raped. • A man cannot be raped unless he wants to be. • Men and women inmates may choose to remain outside the homosexual scene. This document is a research report submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. This report has not been published by the Department. Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.
Research examining correctional officer perceptions about the sexual victimization of inmates is rare. This research offers a first glimpse of what personal, job-related, and attitudinal factors influence blaming incarcerated sexual assault victims among a sample of 376 jail correctional officers in one state. Surveys are utilized to elicit understanding about officer perceptions of incarcerated victims. Findings indicate that jail correctional officer blaming of incarcerated sexual assault victims is highly correlated with perceptions about rape myths and homosexuality. Specifically, officers who adhere to rape myths and disapprove of homosexuality are more likely to blame incarcerated victims of sexual assault. This study is a first to examine factors correlated with jail correctional officer blaming of incarcerated sexual assault victims. The results are useful in understanding the perspectives of jail correctional officers and experiences of victims incarcerated in jails. Implications for correctional institutions and authorities include attending to the issue of sexual assault in correctional facilities, understanding staff perceptions that are related to this issue, training of staff, and classification of inmates.
Rape Lore in Correctional Settings: Assessing Inmates' Awareness of Sexual Coercion in Prisons
In spite of the passage of the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA), sexual assault within correctional facilities continues to be a phenomenon that plagues justice officials, offenders, and inmate rights advocates. In this paper, we utilized a dataset collected by in order to assess inmates' awareness of prison rape. We found that sexual orientation is an important predictor of prison rape awareness. Unlike previous studies, however, we did not find race to be significantly correlated with this phenomenon . Also, in this sample, male respondents were more likely than females to have higher awareness of prison rape. Finally, it was found that subjects with longer exposures to prison life tended to have increased awareness of prison rape. We attribute such a culture of fear and awareness of prison rape to Discourse Theory which shows the interplay of power and knowledge that restrains truth in a certain setting, here, the prison environment. These findings have important implications for policy makers and should be considered in order to make prisons safer places and address the issue of fear of sexual assault.
The sexual assault of male victims in incarcerated settings.
International Journal of the Sociology of Law, 1992
Annotation This article examines the incidence of inmate sexual assault in U.S. prisons, victim trauma, and strategies of prevention and intervention. Abstract Although there are no precise, objective data on the incidence of sexual assault in U.S. prisons, anecdotal and suggestive data indicate that it is a serious problem of inmate security and safety. The inmate victims of such assault experience humiliation, degradation, and possible re-victimization. Sexual assaults contribute to violence in prison and diminish the chances of inmate rehabilitation. Victims of sexual assault in prison often return to the community embittered and enraged, thus prone to the commission of more criminal offenses. To address this problem, local/State/Federal correctional officials should scientifically determine the incidence of prison sexual violence and establish a crisis intervention protocol for inmate victims in accordance with the Cotton and Groth (1984) model. Preventive and intervention steps should include relevant training and attitudinal development for correctional staff, long-term strategies for inmate victims, mandated reporting of any incident of sexual assault, and a more efficient response in the prosecution of such offenses. 87 references. Dumond, R.W. (1992). The sexual assault of male inmates in incarcerated settings. International Journal of the Sociology of Law, 20 Issue: 2 Dated: (June 1992) Pages: 135-157. NCJ139657
Consensual Sex Between Men and Sexual Violence in Australian Prisons
Archives of Sexual Behavior, 2012
Estimates of the incidence of sexual coercion in men's prisons are notoriously variable and fraught with conceptual and methodological problems. In 2006-2007, we conducted a computer-assisted telephone survey of a random sample of 2,018 male prisoners in New South Wales and Queensland. Of 2,626 eligible and available inmates, 76.8% consented and provided full responses. We asked about time in prison, sexual experience, attraction and (homo/bi/heterosexual) identity, attitudes, sexual contact with other inmates, reasons for having sex and practices engaged in, and about sexual coercion, including location and number of perpetrators. Most men (95.1%) identified as heterosexual. Of the total sample, 13.5% reported sexual contact with males in their lifetime: 7.8% only outside prison, 2.8% both inside and outside, and 2.7% only inside prison. Later in the interview, 144 men (7.1% of total sample) reported sexual contact with inmates in prison; the majority had few partners and no anal intercourse. Most did so for pleasure, but some for protection, i.e., to avoid assault by someone else. Before incarceration, 32.9% feared sexual assault in prison; 6.9% had been sexually threatened in prison and 2.6% had been sexually coerced (''forced or frightened into doing something sexually that [they] did not want''). Some of those coerced reported no same-sex contact. The majority of prisoners were intolerant of male-to-male sexual activity. The study achieved a high response rate and asked detailed questions to elicit reports of coercion and sex separately. Both consensual sex and sexual assault are less common than is generally believed.
Prison Officers’ Perceptions of Prisoner Male Rape Victims in England and Wales
Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology
Male rape literature is limited in the UK, with little public attention and limited research about prison officers’ perceptions. The aim of the current study was to explore the attitudes and perceptions of prison officers in England and Wales. Two groups of participants were recruited: Group 1 included 24 retired prison officers; group 2 included 17 participants from the general population. A mixed method design was used to gather quantitative and qualitative data. Findings showed that prison officers did not accept societal myths on male rape, although some had negative attitudes towards male rape occurring in prison. Participants from the general population displayed similar results, demonstrating how being a prison officer does not affect beliefs and attitudes of male rape any more than the public. Support strategies for prisoners would further reduce the stigma of raped prisoners.