The women of Hinseberg

1
The women of Hinseberg

• The prison culture as hindrance för seeking drug
  treatment programmes

2
The study

• Hinseberg closed prison for women
• Survey to 60 women
• Interviews with 50 women
• 6 women were interviewed several times under 2
  years
• Observations for 3 days
• Interviews with 6 staff memebers

3
The Prison Culture

• A social system with symbols, norms values,
  interactions and perceptions of reality that
  influence both the inmates and the staffs every
  day life
• Cultures gives meanings and rules for social
  interaction

4
Previous prison sentence

• Never 34 57
• 1-3 times 12 20
• 4-6 times 6 10
• 7-10 times 1 2
• More than 10 times 7 11

5
Natural and formal rituals

• Natural spontanous acitivities
• Formal - stereotypical activities
• Both natural and formal rituals can fail
• More often formel rituals fails power,
  coerscion, super ordinate and sub ordintae

6
Ritual

• Two or more persons in physical nearness.
• The persons are attentive on the same action or
  object
• Common experiences of emotions

7
Social effects of the ritual

• Group solidarity, feelings of fellowship
• Emotional energy, security, strength initiative
• Feeling of morality and the correctness of being
  in the group

8
Intake ritual - loss of roles, feelings of shame
(inferiority)

• I am convicted for drug offence. When I arrived
  to Hinseberg I had to undress, go to the toilet,
  sit down spread my legs and urinate while two
  female staff watched. Then I got the prison
  clothes. All the time there was no consideration
  for my feelings. I felt like coming to hell. I
  remember my steps up to the introduction wing. I
  had a box with all my stuff and it was quite
  heavy. The staff did not help me carrying and
  they did not say a word. I asked how the
  atmosphere was at the ward and they answered not
  so good just now they got flees up there
  (inmate).

9
Formal ritual

• Creates often positive energy within the order
  giver
• Creates often negative emotional energy within
  the order taker ( felling of insult, exposed to
  use of power)
• No common focus in the ritual
• The ritual create feelings of super ordinate and
  subordinate stratification
• The ritual might create feelings of shame,
  humiliation, loss of roles feeling of powerless
  within the subordinate

10
We ( the inmates) and they (the staff

• Inmates have to adjust to informal codes and
  rules (conflict orientated towards staff)
• There are expectations from other inmates on the
  newcomer in how to relate to staff (spectators
  who have specific role expectations on the
  newcomers)
• Do not talk too long with staff
• Do not become to close to staff
• Do not construct trustful relations to staff

11
Behavior and expectations in relation to other
inmates

• Do not trust anyone
• To not say anything that can be used against you
• Do not show weakness

12
Language

• Less experienced inmates are rapidly socialized
  into the argot ( subcult language)
• You have to know the argot in order to ascribe
  daily events meaning and significance
• Build barriers towards staff
• Communicate so staff cannot understand

13
Status (cultural capital)

• The majority of the women answers that there are
  differences in status
• Related to type of crime, relations to men in
  gangs, previous prison sentences
• Women (Queens) with high status rules the wards

14
Rituals effect, feelings of fellowship

• Evening ritual hugging before doors closed at
  night
• Training
• Drug use

15
Drug use

• Some 50 use illicit drugs

16
Resistance against treatment

• Rules that you should not seek treatment
• Treatment program are called Shite department
  (in prison for men the treatment program often is
  called the diaper/nappy)
• Only snitches that seek treatment
• If the queens seek treatment legitimate even
  for others

17
Staff view on treatment ( treatment oriented
staff)

• There are prison officers that say this will
  never work, she will be back sooner or later
• Several of the staff that have worked here for
  many years have a more cyncial attitude. They
  have seen people come back several times
• There are prison officers that think the
  rehabilitation programmes is wasted time

18
Quotations from women in treament program

• The women in the wings often say that the
  treament wing is a shite wing, only snitches seek
  treatment
• I had to lie and say that I went into treament
  for the sake of my children
• Nobody in the wing wanted me to seek treament.

19
Oppressive culture

• More that 50 are drug users
• Many suffer from feelings of shame, depressions
  etc
• Many have needs of talking to staff and want to
  seek treatment, but cannot because of the inmate
  culture and fear of sanctions
• Role conflicts and ambivalence

20
Staff

• Staff that are treatment directed and interested
• Staff that represent the old prison mentality
• Inexperienced staff are socialized into certain
  values,- not to trust inmates and not to be too
  close to inmates
• Treatment directed staff or new staff could
  experience role conflicts
• Role conflict contact person correctional
  off duties
• Do not show weakness in front of inmates

21
Staff - language

• Are using the argot of the subculture
• Purpose is that it becomes easier to relate to
  inmates, easier to communicate, play on the same
  field
• The women find it ridiculous
• Problem counterproductive. Preserve the prison
  culture

22
Staff - rituals

• Intake ritual
• Visitation ritual
• Staff/group meetings

23
The dominating prison cultures
Inmate culture Hierarchy status Rituals
feelings of fellowship Informal codes Do not
talk too long to staff Do not become to close to
staff Do not trust anybody Do not show
weakness Gards Queens, experienced
prisoners Role conflicts
Staff culture Hierarchy status Rituals
feelings of fellowship Informal codes Do not
talk too long too inmates Do not become to close
to the inmates Do not trust the inmates Do not
show weakness Gards Staff that preserve the old
prison mentality Role conflicts
Conflict
System of interpretation Affect how we relate to
the other
The social representation of the other is
approperiate fits in with the officers work
tasks and the inmates social life and every day
work and relations to staff
Creates social representation of the other
Creates social representation of the other
24
Women in treatment view on staff running program
(social representations)

• Here we get relations to the staff. We cook
  togehter and eat with the staff. We do not call
  them plit.
• Here the staff listen to us
• We have relations to the staff here but at the
  same time they have the keys, they lock us in,
  and they take urin samples. It is very dubbel in
  some way.
• Here we are met with respect.

25
The womens view on their relations to the other
women in the programme

• Here we do not need to play a role, we can be the
  ones we are.
• Here you can be the one you actually are

26
Research objectives needed in Sweden concerning
women in prison

• Evaluation of treatment programs and
  implementation of the programs
• More research on staff culture security staff,
  staff in treatment programs, staff that work in
  the wings, management/leadership
• Differences between female and male
  staff,emotional labour, relations to collegues,
  inmates, etc
• The womens health situation when entering the
  prison and by the time of release
• The inmate culture in different wings like
  treatment programs, normal wings