Dennis R. Longmire

A Large-Scale Multidimensional Test of the Effect of Prison Education Programs on Offenders' Behavior

This study examined the prison behavior and postrelease recidivism of more than 14,000 inmates released from Texas prisons in 1991 and 1992. Comparisons were made between participants and nonparticipants in prison education programs on a variety of behavioral outcomes. The findings suggest that these programs may be most effective when intensive efforts are focused on the most educationally disadvantaged prisoners. Implications for correctional education policy and correctional program research are discussed.

Moral disengagement and attitudes about violence toward animals

Despite a growing body of evidence linking nonhuman animal cruelty to violence toward humans and increasing knowledge of the pain and suffering that animals experience at the hands of humans, research on violence toward animals is relatively sparse. This study examines public attitudes about violence against animals and the criminal justice response to such acts. The study included, as part of a statewide survey, questions of Texas residents gauging the perceived severity of numerous violent acts against nonhuman animals as well as the preferred criminal justice response. The paper presents descriptive analyses and employs OLS Regression to assess the relationship between Banduras (1990, 1999) mechanisms of moral disengagement and violence toward animals. The paper discusses implications for future research on animal cruelty and animal abuse.

Institutional Misconduct and Differential Parole Eligibility Among Capital Inmates

Managing career inmates (e.g., capital murderers) is a serious burden for prison administrators and taxpayers. Research findings are mixed as to whether such inmates will engage in increased levels of institutional misconduct. Using complete disciplinary histories from non-death-sentenced capital inmates in Texas whose offenses occurred between 1987 and 1994, the authors explored the need for increased security levels between capital murderers sentenced to markedly different parole eligibility policies (15 years vs. 35 to 40 years before becoming eligible for parole). They also explored whether career inmates represent greater management challenges because they have “nothing to lose,” compared with capital inmates with less time to parole eligibility. Findings suggest that capital inmates sentenced to longer mandatory prison terms are less likely to engage in serious and violent misconduct. Policy implications are discussed in terms of prison administration, fiscal practicability, and career inmate social development.

Confidence in the death penalty and support for its use: Exploring the value-expressive dimension of death penalty attitudes

Recent media and political attention has raised public awareness of a number of issues surrounding the death penalty. Questions regarding innocence, fair trials, and equitable access to counsel and the appellate process are ubiquitous in coverage of the death penalty. Adequate information about public attitudes toward the death penalty in light of these issues is currently lacking. In 2002, as part of the annual Texas Crime Poll, questions were asked about confidence in the administration of the death penalty, support for the death penalty, and support for a moratorium. The results indicate that, although a majority of respondents support the death penalty, a substantial proportion lack confidence in its use and support a moratorium on executions. Of those lacking confidence and those supporting a moratorium, strong majorities maintain support for the death penalty (68% and 73%, respectively). These findings suggest that death penalty attitudes may be largely value expressive.

An Examination of the Micro-Level Crime–Fear of Crime Link

Since the late 1960s, crime has been hypothesized to be associated with fear of crime. However, little research has been available to test this assumption at the individual level of analysis. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between crime and fear of crime using data collected from a random telephone survey of local residents in the city of Houston. The authors investigate if there is an impact of an individual’s spatial proximity to crime on fear of crime also measured at the individual level. To be more specific, the authors examine the crime–fear of crime link using three types of crime—violent crime, property crime, and disorder crime. Both the residence of respondents and crime events are spatially located, allowing the authors to construct a buffer surrounding the respondent’s residence to obtain the number of crime incidents that occur within a 528-foot (1/10th of a mile) radius of the residence. In addition, the authors explore the relationship between spatial distribution of actual crime events and individual fear of crime at 0.5-mile radius and 1.0-mile radius of each respondent who participated in the telephone interview. The findings suggest that a person’s proximity to crime incidents has a significant impact on fear of crime among respondents interviewed. Furthermore, the magnitudes of coefficients show that different types of crime (violent crime, property crime, and disorder crime) have similar impacts on fear of crime.

Covictims of capital murder: statements of victims' family members and friends made at the time of execution.

The death penalty is often touted as a punishment providing the only way to truly serve justice and offer closure for covictims (defined as family members or friends of murder victims’). These rationales are rarely structured around the actual words of these individuals, however. The findings in this study suggest that such rhetoric oversimplifies and often misrepresents the experiences and perspectives of covictims. Through their own words, we learn that the death penalty is not always the soothing salve for the pain and suffering of covictims we wish it to be. Rather, we find much more ambivalence and complexity in the statements of covictims. The impact of the death penalty and executions on covictims and their ability to attain healing and closure is not so clear cut. By presenting the actual words of capital murder covictims at the time of execution, this inductive, exploratory study provides a novel glimpse at the perspectives of these individuals and their perception of the death penalty process.

Specific crime–fear linkage: the effect of actual burglary incidents reported to the police on residents’ fear of burglary

In the past four decades, most studies examining fear of crime have focused on the relationship between the overall crime phenomenon and general fear of crime. Wilcox Rountree argued that fear of crime is a multidimensional concept, suggesting that different types of crime/victimization may lead to specific crime–fear linkages. This study tested Wilcox Rountrees thesis by examining the association between actual burglaries reported to the police and residents’ fear of burglary. Using data from a random telephone survey of 737 respondents living in Houston, Texas, the findings suggest that burglary incidents surrounding each respondents residence had a significant impact on their expressed fear of burglary, while the numbers of violent and/or disorder incidents were not correlated with burglary-specific fear. In addition, the results show that fear of burglary was significantly associated with respondents’ race (i.e., African American), home ownership, victimization experience, and satisfaction with police work.

Leave it at the gate: job stress and satisfaction in correctional staff

Though academic literature firmly establishes an inverse relationship between job stress and job satisfaction, global correctional studies fail to examine the extent of that affiliation on overall correctional job satisfaction. As such, this study uses a faceted approach to explore underlying relationships between organizational, job, and personal characteristics of correctional staff and causes of job stress and satisfaction. Using the Job Satisfaction Survey, nine aspects of job satisfaction are considered. The Work Stress Scale for Correctional Officers’ analyses of five areas of stress directly related to correctional environments. This study examines both uniform and nonuniform staff assigned to a minimum security prison. On average, staff scored well below the average American worker on the Job Satisfaction Survey. Job satisfaction was predicted exclusively by job characteristics or stressors, including the job itself, role conflict, and ambiguity, and the physical condition of the prison, while employee demographic variables and variables that measure healthy lifestyles (such as sleep and exercise) were not significant predictors. While job stress does predict a substantively significant portion of job satisfaction (21%), there is still room to improve prediction.

Giving voice to the dead: Last statements of the condemned

The discourse surrounding the death penalty includes many diverse voices. However, the voices of the individuals at the center of this ultimate punishment – the condemned themselves – are often silenced. Moreover, systematic research on these individuals is severely lacking in the scholarly literature on the death penalty. This article seeks to ‘give voice’ to these individuals by exploring their last statements. Through an exploratory examination of the last statements of the condemned, the perspectives and sentiments of these individuals are brought to light. Through the use of content analysis, the major themes found among the last statements are identified and a detailed typology is constructed. What we find is that the most dominant themes among the condemned center around transformation and positive messages of connection to others. We find humanity.

A Limited Capacity to Treat: Examining the Effects of Prison Population Control Strategies on Prison Education Programs

The number of prisoners across the country has increased dramatically throughout the 1980s. Texas is one state that has felt the strain of prisoner population pressures. To keep abreast of demand, more state prison units were built. However, new prisons were soon filled to capacity. This situation forced policymakers to implement a population cap and an allocation formula. To keep the prisoner population within the cap, prisoners were released early and time served declined rapidly over the course of the 1980s. These latter consequences severely affected the ability of the Windham School System to deliver prison education programs. The data showed that one in seven inmates was released prior to taking a vocational certification test. Various policy options are then explored.