Understanding victimization of people held in U.S. prisons and jails: The generalizability of an opportunity framework

Abstract

Despite the legal and practical obligation of correctional institutions to prevent victimization of people held in prisons and jails, relatively little research has sought to understand variation in the risk of victimization during incarceration. This characterization is particularly true in the context of detention in local jails and for property victimization. Moreover, the existing literature varies in methodology, model specification, and other features in ways that obscure our ability to determine the generalizability of explanatory models. The current study analyzes nationally representative data on multiple measures of victimization among people incarcerated in U.S. prisons and jails to assess the generalizability of an opportunity framework for understanding this phenomenon. We find that some aspects of the opportunity framework consistently predict victimization regardless of type, location, or perpetrator. Others vary in important ways. Based on our analyses, we provide suggestions for moving the study of victimization during incarceration forward.