252 ') (Corrections and Prison Practices—Adult ForensicsForensic Psychology and Policy ImplicationsLife in prison entails facing a chronically stressful environment with its demanding
regimentation, loss of control, and daily potential for violence. Prison educational
programs offer inmates an escape from these stressors and a lower risk for violence.
However, current criminal justice policies aimed at regulating prison populations
have negative consequences for correctional education programs and the public.
For example, an implemented population ceiling allows thousands of inmates early
release and results in a rapid decrease in time served. Therefore, the opportunity to
benefit and rehabilitate from educational programming eludes many prisoners. As
a policy matter, returning unprepared and untrained prisoners to the community
poses a threat to public safety.
Prison educational programs are the most powerful methods to help advance
prison governance, institutional stability, and control over inmate violence. For
example, inmates who attend several hours of class each day are occupied rather
than idle. Inmates who are busy are not security problems and, as supported by
the aforementioned McCorkle et al. (1995) study, present a low risk for violence.
However, when prison overcrowding forces policy makers to implement criminal
justice initiatives, such as a population cap and a redistribution of funds to other
prison necessities (additional cells, clothes, and food), the results can have a dis-
astrous impact on educational programming. For example, depriving prisoners of
such assistance creates a psychologically stressful environment. Inmates are not re-
habilitated through programs nor kept busy with educational work. Abolition of
educational initiatives would mean that other programs to keep the inmates active
would need to be created, funded, and staffed. Therefore, prison stability and con-
trol over prison violence are hampered when educational programs are cut: inmates
have increased idle time, which can produce violence and chaos. Research on cor-
rectional educational programs demonstrates that they help prison organizations
run efficiently and keep inmates at a low risk for violence.
Suggestions for Future ResearchOne method for minimizing incidents of violence is to use comprehensive envi-
ronmental scanning systems to regularly monitor behaviors in prisons and identify
potential "hot spots" for violence. The use of advanced scanning systems, such as
management support systems, is a relatively recent phenomenon in corrections.
The ultimate goal of these systems is to enhance the ability of correctional admin-
istrators and managers to better monitor the prison environment on a continuing
basis. The environment is monitored by collecting and analyzing a variety of fac-
tors that provide information on the morale, behaviors, and perceptions of prison
staff, administrators, and inmates. Environmental scanning consists of four steps.
First, a process is developed to identify emerging behaviors, such as increases or