How do women's prisons differ from men's? Why have women's prisons been studied less often than institutions for men?

What will be an ideal response?


Although there are far more males in prison than females, the number of women incarcerated continues to grow. The most significant difference between male and female prisons is in the social structure. Research has produced inconsistent results, but many scholars argue that women inmates construct pseudo families. The sexual relationships between inmates also differ, and staff and inmates are significantly more likely to have sexual relationships in women's prisons. Finally, violence in women's prison is less frequent.

Reasons for not studying women's prisons as frequently include differences in the size of prison populations and differences in their involvement in criminal activities. In addition, the fact that the field of criminal justice was male dominated during the early days of the development of the discipline also had an impact.

Criminal Justice

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