Linda Kjær Minke

Cooking in prison – from crook to cook

PURPOSEnThe purpose of this paper is to describe and analyse the principle and practice of self-catering system in a Danish prison. Self-catering is a reflection of the Danish correctional principle of normalisation between prison and community life. Unlike some other jurisdiction, issues of control in meal preparation are subordinate to prisoners right to choose and prepare their own food.nnnDESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACHnFindings are derived from 13 months of ethnographic fieldwork in a Danish maximum security prison for men, including in-depth interviews with 68 prisoners.nnnFINDINGSnOverall findings showed that thinking about meals and their preparation is time consuming for prisoners who tend to be positive about the system making connections with their ability to exercise responsibility for making healthily choices. The research concludes that prisoners possibility for developing cooking competences during incarceration could support prisoners change in social identity from crook to cook.nnnORIGINALITY/VALUEnFood is a fundamental need and the ability to choose what to eat and to prepare ones own food should be a right for all people, including prisoners. This research shows that Danish prisoners are very pleased about the system of self-catering. Most prisoners are concerned about preparing their own meals according to their taste and cultural diversity. If the prison offers the opportunity to train as a chef during imprisonment it could support the prisoners change in social identity from crook to cook on the outside.Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe and analyse the principle and practice of self-catering system in a Danish prison. Self-catering is a reflection of the Danish correctional principle of normalisation between prison and community life. Unlike some other jurisdiction, issues of control in meal preparation are subordinate to prisoners’ right to choose and prepare their own food. Design/methodology/approach – Findings are derived from 13 months of ethnographic fieldwork in a Danish maximum security prison for men, including in-depth interviews with 68 prisoners. Findings – Overall findings showed that thinking about meals and their preparation is time consuming for prisoners who tend to be positive about the system making connections with their ability to exercise responsibility for making healthily choices. The research concludes that prisoners’ possibility for developing cooking competences during incarceration could support prisoners change in social identity from crook to cook. Originali...

The Effects of Mixing Offenders with Non-Offenders: Findings from a Danish Quasi-Experiment

This study examines the effects of mixing offenders with non-offenders at Skejby half-way house in Denmark. Skejby half-way house constitutes an outstanding social experiment, as offenders are deliberately mixed with non-offenders in order to reduce their risk of recidivism. The treatment group consists of offenders who have stayed at Skejby half-way house while the controls are selected from residents of four other half-way houses. A Cox regression analysis reveals that the probability of reoffending is 21% lower for the treatment group than it is for the control group.

Prison Food in Denmark: Normal Responsibility or Ethnocentric Imaginations?

All Scandinavian countries (Denmark, Norway, and Sweden) have incarceration rates below 71 per 100,000 inhabitants, with the notable exception of Greenland. These rates are significantly lower than most developed countries and scholars have associated this trend with the non-punitive ideals associated with the Nordic Welfare Model. Indeed, the Nordic Welfare Model has been historically characterized by social cohesion and a substantial reallocation of resources that perpetuates relatively small socio-economic differences between individuals (Kvist et al. 2012). In terms of criminal justice systems, these tenets suggest a system of corrections that is focused on rehabilitation and reintegration, not punishment (Pratt and Eriksson 2012; Pratt 2008).

Normalization, Social Bonding, and Emotional Support— A Dog’s Effect within a Prison Workshop for Women

ABSTRACT A fundamental tenet of the Danish Prison System is the principle of normalization, meaning that prisons are organized in such a way that the conditions within the walls more or less resemble the conditions outside them. When prison conditions differ as little as possible from normal daily life on the outside, it underpins rehabilitation efforts. To have contact with animals during incarceration can be seen as a part of normalization and thus contributing to rehabilitation. However, in Danish prisons, animal-based programs are not usually offered, nor are prisoners allowed to keep a pet. In an open prison, a women’s prison workshop was established in 2014. In response to prisoners’ requests for contact with animals, an employee brought her own dog during the hours of the workshop, from Monday to Friday. In Denmark and the other Scandinavian countries, not much attention has been given to the effect of the human–animal bond within prisons. To document how well it might work, qualitative methods for data collection were used, including interviews with incarcerated women (n = 12) and staff (n = 3) and participant observation (67 hours) within the women’s workshop. The dog contributed to normalize the prison setting, and participants revealed that the dog improved social relations between inmates and between staff and inmates. Finally, the dog provided comfort to the incarcerated women when they had to deal with difficult personal feelings. A recommendation for policy makers and prison officials arising from this study is that animals should be a normal part of the prison setting.