Prisons and Punishment

Prisons and Punishment provides a critical overview of the main debates and dilemmas associated with prisons, imprisonment, and punishment. It acquaints readers with the most interesting and influential literature that has shaped the field internationally. This reference collection is particularly timely because of the exponentially growing prison populations in many countries, creating a crisis in their penal systems.

Volume 1: The Meaning of the Prison – outlines the emergence of the modern prison and explores differing contemporary models of imprisonment in various parts of the world. It examines prisons in market societies, covering recent moves towards increasing managerialism and greater accountability.

Volume 2: Prisoners and Prison Communities – explores the pervasive characteristics and ‘effects’ of imprisonment from sociological and psychological perspectives. It discusses life in prison for ...

Editor's Introduction

A compilation of volume Introductions.

Introduction to Volume I

Part 1: Punishment in a Time of Social, Cultural and Economic Change

According to the most recently available statistics (Walmsley, 2007), the world prison population currently numbers over 9.25 million people, up from 8.75 million in just five years. Why does the global incarceration rate continue to rise? Are crime rates falling as a consequence of locking up more people? Which countries rely the most on imprisonment as a penal sanction? How can we explain the fact that some countries seem to be reversing the international trend and reducing their prison numbers? What are the consequences of private investors’ profiting from prisons? This volume seeks to provide answers to these universal questions, and also to provide a ...

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