PRISON

Prison

[Name of the Institute]

Prison

Introduction

The prison system is developed in order to provide a rehabilitory environment for the individuals who break the rules of the society. These crimes cuase a hinderance in the normal operations of the society, and pose issues for the normal law abiding citizens. Hence in order to safeguard the majority of the people within the society, it is important that the regulatory authorities develop a peaceful environment (Griffith et Al, 1999, pp. 365). In this scenario the people who break the laws of the society and pose a threat to the rights of others', have to be penalized for their acts. A society cannot function if the rights of every individual are safeguarded from the oppressors and criminals. The prison environment should be focused on providing positive influence in the lives of these individuals, and provide them with an opportunity to understand their crimes and develop themselves in to responsible members of the society.

Discussion

The Role of Prison

The criminals present in the society cannot be treated as isolated and separated stakeholders; rather they also represent the major components of the community (McCollister et Al, 2003, pp. 77). In this perspective it is the responsibility of the entire society to look after the rights and the development of these individuals. Crime does not make a person absolutely corrupt or a bad influence; a person can learn from his mistakes and proceed to make positive changes in the lifestyle (Hobson & Shines, 1998, pp. 509). This should be the primary role of the prison based environments, and criminal system should be amended to provide better care for convicted felons (Ortmann, 2000, pp. 217). The prison should not be viewed as a punishment for the criminals for their respective crimes, rater it should be developed as a environment where these individuals can go and understand the implications of their actions. It should be a place where the criminals can rehabilitate themselves, rather than reinforcing their negative attributes.

Prison Environmental Factors

The prison environment itself represents the biggest dilemma in the rehabilitation process of the criminals. It is an environment which is generally influenced by the various internal social structures, which are developed by the relevant prisoners. It is true that within the prisons the police force maintains the disciplinary factors; however the social structure is still developed by the prisoners themselves. In this environment it is the criminals who exert pressure on other inmates and enforce their behaviors (Duguid et Al, 1996, pp. 82). In a social structure where the criminals are amassed and given an opportunity to develop their own social norms, the resulting factor would be very negative. In this scenario the prisoners would only be exposed to an environment where they will not experience a positive change in their lives. Rather the prisoners would be more motivated to rely on their anti social and criminal behaviors to survive and excel in the prison related social structure (Beech & Fisher, 2004, pp. 144). The role of the police ...