Prison Size and Inmate Rule Violation

Abstract

In recent decades the prison industry has grown at an unprecedented rate. Prisons have become overcrowded and underfunded. Because of the demographics of those housed in prisons, it is important to understand how increased overcrowding has affected their behavior and tendency to break prison rules. In this study we look at a data set collected by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation to analyze any possible connections between prison size and inmate rule violation. Three distinct sizes were examined while also taking into consideration other factors such as age, ethnicity and education level. For our analysis we used a negative binomial regression model. Findings showed a relationship between ethnicity/age and prison size at smaller prisons. No significant relationships were found within medium and large prisons. Nevertheless, a more comprehensive study of prison size affects is needed to address the potentially disastrous effects of overcrowded prisons.