Sport in Prison

Exploring the Role of Physical Activity in Correctional Settings

Rosie Meek

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN: 9780415857611
• eBook ISBN: 9781135081904
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Criminology
• Index: Social Sciences

Although prison can present a critical opportunity to engage with offenders through interventions and programming, reoffending rates among those released from prison remain stubbornly high. Sport can be a means through which to engage with even the most challenging and complex individuals caught up in a cycle of offending and imprisonment, by offering an alternative means of excitement and risk taking to that gained through engaging in offending behaviour, or by providing an alternative social network and access to positive role models.

This is the first book to explore the role of sport in prisons and its subsequent impact on rehabilitation and behavioural change. The book draws on research literature on the beneficial role of sport in community settings and on prison cultures and regimes, across disciplines including criminology, psychology, sociology and sport studies, as well as original qualitative and quantitative data gathered from research in prisons. It unpacks the meanings that prisoners and staff attach to sport participation and interventions in order to understand how to promote behavioural change through sport most effectively, while identifying and tackling the key emerging issues and challenges.

Sport in Prison is essential reading for any advanced student, researcher, policy-maker or professional working in the criminal justice system with an interest in prisons, offending behaviour, rehabilitation, sport development, or the wider social significance of sport.

1	Introduction

This book attempts to draw together and make further contributions to two established and separate bodies of literature devoted to (a) the beneficial role of sport in community settings and (b) investigations of prison cultures and regimes. By focusing on the role of sport and physical activity in prison, it blends a disparate body of literature from the fields of criminology and criminal justice, psychology, sociology and sports studies, supplemented with a substantial body of original qualitative and quantitative data. The result seeks to be a detailed and thorough resource with equal appeal to policy makers and practitioners (including representatives from sporting organisations, prison governors, officers and other criminal justice practitioners) as well as academics, researchers and advanced students.

Why explore the role of sport and physical activity in prison?

The unprecedented levels of political and public interest currently being enjoyed by sport and physical activity may have been boosted in no small part by the overwhelming success of the London 2012 Olympics, the aftermath of which has initiated renewed awareness of the power of sport to promote social, psychological and physical well-being, but a substantial body of academic literature has long been devoted to the role of sport in promoting social cohesion and psychological well-being. To date, however, the focus on the positive effects of sport has almost exclusively been in community settings and much of it centred solely on young people (see Cameron & MacDougall, 2000; Coalter, 2009; Morris, Sallybanks, Willis & Makkai, 2003; Nichols, 2007; Nichols & Taylor, 1996; Taylor, Crow, Irvine & Nichols, 1999; Tsuchiya, 1996). Research specifically concerning the role of sport in prisons and with offending populations remains sparse, despite the obvious lessons that may be drawn from the more established practices in community settings and the additional opportunities and uses for sport in the context of incarceration and rehabilitation. Research undertaken for this book has confirmed that practitioners, policy makers and fellow academics recognise a pressing need to identify and explore the key emerging issues, challenges and debates surrounding sport in prison. To unpack the meanings that prisoners and staff attach to participation in sport and physical activity will inevitably help us to develop a better understanding of how to make best use of such initiatives and how to promote behavioural change through sport most effectively. So far though, no text has drawn together this rapidly developing body of international literature nor explored the processes underpinning sport’s benefits and its potential consequent impact on rehabilitative processes.

It is perhaps telling that my own interest in this area began with a small scale evaluation of a sports-based initiative which developed well beyond the two year period of the programme itself and sparked in me an eagerness to explore and expand the evidence base for the actual and potential role of sport in prison. The sociological and psychological examination of sport may be well-developed broader disciplines, but whereas in criminology, sociology and forensic psychology the study of prisons, penology, prisoners and prison staff is thriving, when first commencing my research in this area I was struck by the lack of academic attention paid to what many recognise as a cornerstone of the prison environment – the prison gym and its associated facilities.

Amongst the general population, the benefits of regular physical activity to psychological and physical health are well understood and participation in physical activity is recognised as an important contributor to well-being and quality of life for people of all ages. Those who are more physically active tend to live longer, healthier lives, an outcome of increased functional and cognitive capacity, reduced anxiety and depression, the prevention of obesity and the diminished likelihood of developing chronic diseases. Social and psychological benefits include improved opportunities for social contact and the promotion of social inclusion and community cohesion. Increasing or maintaining physical activity, particularly among those who are sedentary, is therefore a major goal of health and fitness professionals, psychological services and health care providers, and as communities that house those with an increased likelihood of significant health needs, prisons represent an especially important target population. Indeed, recognition of the role of physical activity in promoting prisoner well-being is reflected in the Prison Service Physical Education operating manual which states that:

PE plays an important part in a prison regime by providing high quality purposeful activity and engagement with prisoners; in addition PE can make a major contribution to the physical, mental and social well-being of prisoners. (HM Prison Service, 2009, p. 4)

A small but substantial body of international literature has made a case for the primary benefits of prison-based sport and physical activity in terms of improved physical health (Elger, 2009; Nelson, Specian, Tracy & DeMello, 2006), mental health (Buckaloo, Krug & Nelson, 2009; Cashin, Potter & Butler, 2008; Libbus, Genovese & Poole, 1994; Verdot, Champely, Clement & Massarelli, 2010; Woodall, 2010), and to a lesser extent, in coping with prison life and facilitating social control (Martos-Garcia, Devis-Devis & Sparkes, 2009a; Murtaza & Uddin, 2011; Wagner, McBride & Crouse, 1999). Contemporary policy regarding the use of sport with offenders – in line with social policy more widely – has increasingly advocated the use of sport and physical activity as a vehicle for achieving non-sport policy objectives (Bloyce & Smith, 2010), and several rationales have been proposed to explain the therapeutic potential of sport for offenders and how it may contribute to efforts to reduce crime. Although sport may previously have received limited critical recognition because of its associations with ‘play’, there is a growing awareness of its wider potential psychological, as well as social, impact. For instance, sport may offer an alternative means of excitement and risk taking to that gained through engaging in offending behaviour (Pfefferbaum & Wood, 1994; Zuckerman, 1991) or provide an alternative social network, access to positive role models and a way of receiving positive feedback for nondeviant behaviour, as explained by social learning processes (Bandura, 1977). Participating in sport may offer an alternative means for a positive identity (Busseri, Costain, Campbell, Rose-Krasnor & Evans, 2011; Horne, Tomlinson, Whannel & Woodward, 2012; Kehily, 2007; Ravizza, 2011; Schafer, 1969), and promote well-being by enhancing personal growth in relation to self-esteem, self-concept, locus of control, empathy, tolerance, cooperation and self-discipline, problem solving, decision making, teamwork and conflict resolution (Coalter, 2005; Ekeland, Heian & Hagn, 2005; Nichols, 1997; Ravizza & Motonak, 2011; West & Crompton, 2001). Sport may offer a form of social control (Hirschi, 1969), for example by strengthening attachments to positive role models, increasing commitment to and involvement in law abiding behaviour, and offering a belief system aligned to social rules. Lastly, and in line with routine activity theory (Felson, 1997), participation in sport may simply reduce opportunities to engage in criminal activities.

There is, clearly, a strong body of evidence suggesting that, aside from the well-established psychological and social benefits, the provision of physical activity represents a simple intervention which can ameliorate the negative health effects of a sedentary lifestyle in prison. Despite an expectation that prisoners should spend a significant period of time engaged in ‘meaningful activity’ each day, prisoners consistently report highly sedentary lifestyles in custody, with extended periods of time spent within their cells. Various reviews and reports published by the Inspectorate of Prisons in England and Wales have indicated that, contrary to policy expectations, many prisoners do not spend the recommended one hour a day or more in the open air, and a substantial proportion of the prison population are consistently found to be locked up with nothing to do during the week. Although widespread changes to introduce the working prison agenda may have an impact on this, the situation remains that men and women in prison are typically less likely than those in the community to participate in sufficient physical activity.¹ Sedentary behaviour has consequently been identified as a high-risk health behaviour in prisons which contributes to an increased risk of obesity, hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and mortality (Jebb & Moore, 1999; Math, Murthy, Parthasanthy, Kumar & Mudhusudhan, 2011; Plugge, Foster, Yudkin & Douglas, 2009) thus placing a considerable cost burden on health care providers both in custody and the community.

However, it is also widely acknowledged that although prison can present a critical opportunity to engage with offenders through interventions and programming, reoffending rates among those released from prison remain consistently high: around half of those released from prison reoffend within a year, and this figure increases for younger offenders and those serving short sentences (Ministry of Justice, 2012e). Previous research has identified a clear need for specialist delivery and carefully planned methods of motivating offenders to make positive life changes during their time in prison custody, and it is not surprising that there is an assumption – albeit a largely untested one – that sport can present a valuable and unique opportunity to engage with even the most challenging and complex individuals caught up in a cycle of offending and imprisonment.

Methodology

The research that contributed to this book aimed to be sufficiently detailed to capture the particular experiences of prisoners and prison staff from specific institutions and representatives from associated organisations but general enough to be applied nationally and internationally. Permission was sought and granted by the Ministry of Justice to gather data from prisons throughout England and Wales, followed by approval from governors or research coordinators at each of the individual establishments that participated.

Recognising the value of combining different methodological approaches in order to generate a robust research design, to capture fully the details of a particular topic, and to establish the most valuable theoretical contribution, a variety of quantitative and qualitative techniques were employed. Primary data were also collected from a number of sources, specifically:

1

A series of interviews and focus groups were carried out with a total of 152 prisoners and newly released ex-prisoners (107 males and 45 females), with over half of these interviewed two or more times, either whilst in custody (n = 54), or both in custody and after release (n = 24).

2

A national structured interview/survey of the managers of prison gyms (n = 52) capturing qualitative and quantitative data from establishments of different categories (security level, type of prisoner accommodated) and representing public sector (n = 47) and privately run (n = 5) prisons throughout England and Wales. All prisons operating in England and Wales during the period of data collection were invited to participate, resulting in responses from over a third of all establishments.

Supplementing the gym manager surveys, in-depth research visits (n = 21) were carried out at gym departments operating across the prison estate in England and Wales in order to observe practice, interview staff and prisoners, and identify good practice case studies. These case studies punctuate the chapters that follow and aim to capture the way that individual establishments have drawn upon sport and physical activity in order to find innovative and effective ways of responding to the challenges present within prison establishments and criminal justice systems.

Table 1.1 Survey responses from gym managers across the prison estate

Type of establishment	% of the prison estate	Number of establishments who responded
Juvenile*	5%	2
Young Offenders Institute (YOI)/YOI & Adult*	13%	4
Category B*	10%	5
Category C*	23%	13
Category D (Open)	7%	6
Local	22%	12
Female*	11%	4
High Security (Category A)	6%	4
Immigration Removal Centre (IRC)	3%	2
Total	100%	52

*Including responses from privately run establishments (operated by G4S, Serco and Sodexo)

3	Individual semi-structured interviews were carried out with relevant stakeholders (n = 46) including those involved in overseeing and implementing sport in prison, prison governors and senior managers, prison and probation staff, employers in the sport and fitness industry and representatives from the voluntary sector and sporting organisations.
4	Questions relating to participation in sport and physical activity were integrated...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• Foreword
• Acknowledgements
• Abbreviations
• 1. Introduction
• 2. Towards a conceptualisation of the role of sport in prison
• 3. Setting the scene: Participation in sport and physical activity across the prison estate
• 4. Promoting sport and physical activity in diverse prisoner populations
• 5. The benefits of and barriers to participating in sport and physical activity for women and girls in prison
• 6. Sport and youth crime: How far has our understanding developed?
• 7. The role of sport in reducing reoffending and promoting desistance
• 8. Rugby and football initiatives for young men in prison: A quantitative and qualitative evaluation
• 9. The contribution of sport towards education and employment opportunities in prison
• 10. The role of sport and physical activity in prison-based health promotion
• 11. Promoting order and control, adaptation and citizenship in prison through sport
• 12. Considering the risks and challenges associated with sport and physical activity in prison
• 13. The importance of sport and physical activity for prison staff
• 14. Conclusions, implications and future research directions
• References
• Index