Corrections_Today_Summer_2024_Vol.86_No.2

This research was supported by Grant 2014-MU-CX-0111 awarded by the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. It was coordinated, in part, by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (723-AR15). The contents of this article, including its opinions, findings, and conclusions, are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice or the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. G angs rank among the most significant realities behind bars. When people are newly admitted to jail or prison they confront a scene that is much different from gangs in the free world. And when prisoners are transferred to a new facility they must learn which group is in power and who is calling the shots. There is much pressure to affiliate with gangs while incarcerated. Gangs offer incentives that are attractive to prisoners. Comradery, material goods, protection and status are highly appealing in an environment that strips people of identity, possessions and relationships. It is no surprise, then, that people in jail and prison are more likely to affiliate with gangs while incarcerated than while in the community. Of course, some of this has to do with importing street gang affiliations into prison. Still, many people join a gang for the first time while incarcerated.

explored: how and why do prisoners avoid getting in volved in gangs? The answers to questions about avoiding gangs are arguably as important as those for joining them. Indeed, correctional officials can learn as much from those who avoid problems as they can from those who engage in them. Anyone with an interest in breaking the grip of gangs on the social organization of jails and prison must take gang prevention and intervention seriously. Learning about gang avoidance in prison The LoneStar Project, or the Texas Study of Trajecto ries, Associations, and Reentry, a National Institute of Justice-funded study (2014-MU-CX-0111), involved in terviews with 802 men imprisoned in Texas. They were conducted in two facilities: one was a large release unit and the second an administrative segregation unit. These interviews were wide-ranging, covering top ics such reentry preparedness to family reunification and employment prospects to attitudes and beliefs. The timing of the interview, within one week prior to release from prison, was ideal to reflect on their prison experi ences, including gang involvement. Just over 20% of the people who were interviewed self-reported a history of gang involvement while incarcerated. About half of them imported their gang af filiations into prison from the street, while the other half joined a gang while incarcerated. There is often reservation about whether prisoners tell the truth in these interviews, especially with regard to gangs. Indeed, one of the longstanding explanations for why such little research has been conducted with gangs in prison has to do with the secrecy of gangs and reluctance of gang members to be interviewed. That was not the case in this study. Since classifica tion records were available, it was possible to compare what prisoners said about themselves with what they were documented as by the prison system — the story was the same 83% of the time. That is not perfect correspondence, but it was about as good as self- and official- reports of religious preference. The other 80% of the sample that never affiliated with a gang were asked several questions about avoidance, including whether there were gangs in the unit where they were housed, whether they were checked about their

There is much pressure to affiliate with gangs while incarcerated. Gangs offer incentives that are attractive to prisoners.

But the stubborn fact that remains is a large majority of prisoners never affiliate with a gang. The most recent national estimates based on correctional records indi cate that about 13%-15% of prisoners are documented as confirmed, associated or suspected gang members in jails and prisons. With so much attention focused on the methods and motivations for joining a gang, the flipside is rarely

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Summer 2024 | Corrections Today

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