Racialized Social Group Position Among Correctional Officers and Prisoners in Solitary Confinement

This study analyses data derived from hundreds of hours of ethnographic observations and 100 interviews with both prisoners and staff working in solitary confinement in a state prison system. Specifically, Blumer's theoretical framework illuminates four group processes that function to facilita...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Smith, Earl 1946- (Author) ; Hattery, Angela 1966- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2025
In: The prison journal
Year: 2025, Volume: 105, Issue: 6, Pages: 760-783
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Keywords:
racialized social group position
corrections officers
Prisons
Solitary Confinement
Description
Summary:This study analyses data derived from hundreds of hours of ethnographic observations and 100 interviews with both prisoners and staff working in solitary confinement in a state prison system. Specifically, Blumer's theoretical framework illuminates four group processes that function to facilitate racialized group solidarity that were evidenced in the data. We conclude with a discussion of the slippery slope from racial solidarity and group position to the total dehumanization that results in staff defying them their basic, constitutionally guaranteed human rights.
ISSN:1552-7522
DOI:10.1177/00328855251388940