Cette thèse s’interroge sur les possibilités et les difficultés de reconstruire le droit criminel moderne et a comme point d’observation empirique les travaux d’une Commission brésilienne de juristes qui élabora une proposition législative restée connue comme étant « la réforme pénale de 1984 ». Cette Commission, active entre 1980 et 1983, avait comme but d’étudier et de proposer des changements à la législation criminelle brésilienne en visant surtout la réduction du recours à la prison et la création de peines non carcérales. La thèse montre comment cette réforme, conçue par une Commission de juristes libéraux et progressistes, ne réussit pas à transformer une critique de la prison en changements législatifs innovateurs. À partir de la problématique de la (non) évolution du droit criminel moderne, formulée par la théorie de la rationalité pénale moderne d’Alvaro Pires, cette étude privilégie l’observation des propositions législatives de ladite réforme concernant la détermination de la peine et les normes de sanctions ainsi que les discours sous-jacents. Ainsi, la thèse identifie les obstacles cognitifs qui empêchèrent la réforme d’accomplir ses deux objectifs principaux. Le matériel empirique est composé majoritairement de documents et de quelques entretiens. Les documents comprennent les textes de réflexion sur les propositions de réforme élaborées par la Commission et les textes de propositions législatives. Nous avons également interviewé les juristes membres de la Commission de la réforme de 1984, lorsque c’était encore possible, de même que certains juristes qui suivaient à l’époque les travaux de la Commission et qui nous ont servi de personnes-ressources pour la composition de notre matériel empirique. L’analyse de ce matériel fait ressortir que le fort attachement de la commission aux théories de la peine du noyau dur de la rationalité pénale moderne (la rétribution, la dissuasion et la dénonciation) ainsi que la dévalorisation de la théorie de la réhabilitation dans la pratique de détermination de la peine réduisirent la portée des propositions quant aux objectifs de la Commission.

Since Kingston Penitentiary’s opening in 1835, prison labour has been an integral part of Canada’s penal history. With purported goals such as deterrence, rehabilitation, reintegration, and providing sustenance to the state, the practice of coercing or forcing a prisoner to work while serving a sentence of incarceration was further embedded in the penal landscape in 1980 with the inception of CORCAN, the Correctional Service of Canada’s prison labour program. Despite critiques of the prison as “a fiasco in terms of its own purposes” (Mathiesen, 2006, p. 141), prison labour continues as a mechanism of the state’s penal apparatus. Drawing on political economy of punishment and penal abolitionism literature, this study reveals and disrupts official discourses used to justify and perpetuate this modern form of slavery in Canada. Through a content analysis of 33 Solicitor General of Canada and CORCAN annual reports, I demonstrate how CORCAN’s prison labour program is legitimated as a “positive reform” (Mathiesen, 1974, p. 202) of Canada’s penal system, beneficial to the reintegration of prisoners into society, communities, and the needs of the Canadian state and economy. Underneath this benevolent mask such representations are found to reproduce neoliberal capitalism as the hegemonic form of economic organization, construing prisoners and prison labour as solutions to the gaps and shifts in the national economy and labour market. After outlining these contributions, I suggest ways that future research can reveal and discredit penal ‘solutions’ such as prison labour to eradicate the penal system as a means to address the harms inherent in our social and economic systems.

Studies on health and incarceration have extensively demonstrated that incarcerated women have poorer health statuses than non-incarcerated women and than incarcerated men, both as a result of confinement and of the intersection of abuse, poverty, homelessness and addiction that are simultaneously pathways to criminalisation and to poor health. Without denying the reality of disease, physical and mental suffering experienced by women in prison, this thesis conceptualizes the “problem of health in prison” by framing it as a vehicle of and effect of power relations. By studying neoliberal rationalities and technologies that constitute health, poststructuralist scholars have demonstrated how neoliberal subjects are enticed to continuously pursue health and to adhere to the imperative to be healthy. Demonstrating the intersection of neoliberal health governance and penal governance, criminologists have shown how prisons produce the subject of a healthy prisoner, who is a self-regulated woman, freely working towards her rehabilitation. Rather than studying programs, public policies and archives, this thesis innovates by examining the experiences and narratives of the subjects who are being governed and enticed to be “healthy.” Specifically, my research provides a contextualized analysis of how women negotiate and manage their health during incarceration and upon their release from prison. The first article focuses on tensions between this work’s conceptual framework and its methodology, i.e. participatory action research. An emerging literature has been building bridges between poststructuralism and participatory action research, highlighting the latter’s potential for transformative action. Using examples from participatory action research projects with incarcerated or previously incarcerated women, the article discusses how “participation” and “action” can be redefined by using a poststructuralist definition of subjectivity. The second article tackles the issue of how women “do” health in prison. Using three issues—access to health care services, smoking, and the management of body weight—the article explores how participants adopted different embodied subjectivities, which conflicted or aligned with neoliberal governmentality. It describes how, through failure to conform to neoliberal ideals of “health,” mechanisms of self-surveillance and self-regulation are relayed by feelings of guilt, shame, and anxiety, even when incarcerated women attempt to conform to imperatives to be healthy. Finally, the last article focuses on how, upon prison release, participants attempted to “undo” the imprint of penal governance on their bodies and health. Through the exploration of corporal practices, such as taking care of one’s appearance, the use of psychoactive medications, and defecating, the article shows how women attempt to “undo” prison in order to pursue health. Though these two articles focus on different periods of participants’ lives and rely on different yet related concepts—embodied subjectivities and corporal practices—the common thread between the two is to show the attempts by participants to “undo” prison from their embodied selves, and to “do” health as incited by the ethical imperatives to be healthy. The thesis concludes with a discussion about the pursuit of health, and its effects on the populations deemed as “at risk” and “unhealthy.”

Mental health screening is frequently recommended to facilitate earlier detection of mental illness in prisons. For this goal to be achieved: (1) the screening process must be accurate; (2) appropriate follow-up treatment must be provided; (3) the treatment must lead to improved outcomes. The current thesis aimed to evaluate mental health screening in relation to these three criteria by studying 13, 281 prisoners admitted to Correctional Service of Canada. Screening achieved comparable accuracy to tools that have been studied internationally and many inmates received at least some treatment. However, interruptions in treatment were frequent and long-term treatment was rare. There was weak evidence that treatment led to reduced rates of institutional incidents of suicide, self-harm, victimization and violence. While screening remains widely endorsed, further study of its impacts is needed to maximize its value. This could include considering alternatives to screening itself, or as follow-up for those who screen positive.

Partant des déterminants du renvoi soulevés par Zauberman (1982) et tenant compte des particularités du contexte carcéral, nous avons tenté, en effectuant des entrevues semi-dirigées auprès d’agents correctionnels, de comprendre quelles logiques sont à la base de la production de l’isolement disciplinaire, c’est-à-dire celles qui mènent un agent à reconnaitre une situation problématique et à la renvoyer devant le comité disciplinaire. Nos résultats permettent d’effectuer certains constats à l’égard de chacune des étapes du processus disciplinaire et rapportent des recommandations faites par les participants afin d’en améliorer le fonctionnement. Étonnament, l’objectif de punition serait rarement le principal objectif du renvoi d’un acte. Aussi, bien que les déterminants soulevés par Zauberman (1982) s’appliquent aux logiques des agents correctionnels, ceux-ci s’avèrent parfois être davantage déterminants de non-renvoi considérant les particularités du contexte carcéral qui créent certaines singularités telles que l’apparition d’un autre déterminant, celui du poids des règlements et procédures.

This thesis analyses findings from a predominantly qualitative study of young (aged 18 to 24) imprisoned fathers interviewed in prison shortly before release, some of whom were also followed into the community. The research focused on the experiences of these men in prison, and how being a young father in prison affected their attitudes to offending, fatherhood and the future. Furthermore, this work investigated how these men then reintegrated back into the community and whether they managed to fulfil their hopes for change, focussing on what factors helped or hindered this process. This research applies desistance theory and identity theory to the lived experience of young imprisoned fathers; a group that has been largely ignored in previous research. The work is informed by both social-psychological (Maruna, 2001; Farrall, 2002; Meek, 2007a) and sociological perspectives (Laub and Sampson, 2003). This thesis adds to knowledge about the process of change for young offending fathers, highlighting it to be a gradual and active process that draws on both internal and external influences. Change is a complex activity, especially for men with transient relationships and lifestyles, which relies on the fragile coincidence of many inter-connected factors. Due to the instability of many of these factors, it is a process characterised by successes and failures. This thesis argues that criminal justice policies need to support fatherhood to take full advantage of fatherhood’s desistance-potential. The findings provide evidence to support Maruna et al’s (2004a) description of a three track process of change, requiring self-determination, formal support and informal support. They also suggest the need for the additional important factors of identity transformation (Maruna, 2001; Paternoster and Bushway, 2009) in positive social and personal contexts (Farrall, 2002; Walker, 2010). Fatherhood adds an additional layer to these factors. This thesis also contributes to knowledge of how agency and structural factors interact.

Background: Ex-armed forces personnel constitute 3.5% of the prison population in England and Wales but we know little about why some former service personnel end up in prison. Furthermore, understanding what the mental health needs of this group are and how to meet them will inform service delivery and offending prevention strategies. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the mental health needs, and explore the pathways to offending, of ex-armed forces personnel in prison. Methods: A mixed methods design was used. A researcher administered questionnaire collected demographic information; details of pre-service; military experience; circumstances post-armed forces; and a detailed assessment of mental health of 105 male ex-armed forces personnel in prison. Their healthcare and offending records were accessed to record any formal mental health diagnoses and details of previous offending. Two studies made up the qualitative arm of the study: study 1 used semi-structured interviews (n = 20) to explore the pathways to offending of ex-armed forces personnel in prison from their perspective and study 2 employed semi-structured interviews with prisoners (n = 10) and a focus group with professionals (n = 5) to explore the service needs and treatment barriers of former service personnel in prison. Results: Of 105 participants, 40 (38%) screened positively for a current common mental health (CCMH) problem (i.e. depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress disorder [PTSD]) and a high prevalence of alcohol misuse was assessed (n = 59, 56%). Over half of the sample were serving their first custodial sentence (n = 58, 55%). Violent offences were the most common index offence (n = 34, 32%) and the majority of the sample had previous convictions recorded (n = 70, 71%). Participants considered their pathways to offending as complex and incorporating pre-service, military service and post-service factors. Perceived influences on offending included mental health and substance misuse problems, impulsivity and problem solving difficulties. Prison was considered an opportunity to access help and staff having military awareness was thought to encourage help-seeking. However, stigma and previous negative experiences were perceived to make asking for help difficult and the variability in support across the prison estate was considered a barrier to support by all. Discussion: The findings of this study add to the literature and our knowledge of ex-armed forces personnel in prison. The study found that the mental health needs of the group are largely similar to the general prison population but that potential nuances exist regarding alcohol misuse and PTSD. The pathways to offending of the group are complex and are influenced by a number of factors in veterans' lives. Based on the findings of the study implications and directions for future work are discussed.

Cette thèse porte sur l’expérience de sortie de prison des hommes adultes qui, suite à une trajectoire carcérale, passent ou sont passés par une maison de transition située dans la région de l’Outaouais et entament une démarche de réinsertion sociale. En s’appuyant sur des entretiens semi-dirigés auprès de 23 hommes et de 7 intervenants qui les accompagnent, et à l’aide d’un cadre théorique fondé principalement sur le concept de « carrière », cette thèse permet de mettre au jour : a) l’expérience et la trajectoire de sortie de prison des hommes adultes allant de l’entrée dans l’institution carcérale à la maison de transition ; b) une typologie de la « carrière de sortie de prison » fondée sur l’articulation des positions objectives et subjectives des hommes rencontrés dans leur parcours post-carcéral et 3) le point de vue d’intervenants chargés d’accompagner les hommes vers la réinsertion sociale. Les résultats mettent notamment au jour : 1) trois grandes phases de la sortie de prison (l’arrivée en détention, l’incarcération et la transition post-carcérale), lesquelles sont modulées par une pluralité d’épreuves et de moments spécifiques (tels que la réception, l’accueil, la catégorisation, l’introduction, l’assignation d’un agent de probation ou d’un intervenant, l’audience, le transfert, etc.), qui demandent aux sortants de prison plusieurs ajustements et reconfigurations tant sur le plan physique, relationnel que moral ; 2) une typologie de la carrière de sortie de prison articulée autour de cinq positions : le répit, la réflexion, la rétroaction, la révolte et la retraite anticipée et 3) l’ambivalence du travail d’intervention auprès des sortants de prison (entre clinique et probation ; surveillance et aide). L’ensemble de ces résultats permettent de cibler des pistes d’intervention pour l’amélioration des pratiques entourant cette étape de la sortie de prison, encore peu explorée et prise en compte dans la compréhension des trajectoires des personnes judiciarisées.

The theme of this diploma work is an architectural study of reconstruction of a former prison in Cejl street, Brno. It suppose to be a multifunctional cultural center, which should provide spaces for an artisctic activity primarely for young artists. The plot is to be found in Brno, city part Zábrdovice. It is located nearby city center and covers the area of almost 8000 m2. It is surrounded by streets Cejl, Bratislavská and Soudní. Object should serve as a base for young artistic enterpreneurs and companies aimed to artisctic industry and culture. This function will accompany a residential function and function of temporary accomodation.

This study sought to examine what gaps existed in practice through the perspectives of correctional social workers in terms of helping incarcerated mother–infant dyads bond. Additionally, it examined whether a prison nursery was viewed as a possible option within a smaller correctional facility. Theories used to guide this study included attachment theory and separation-individuation theory, which align with the research questions that sought to explore gaps in services, supports that could be established, and program feasibility. Action research, using an anonymous online survey, resulted in N = 6 social work participants who worked as prison social workers in the northeast region of the United States. Data were coded using thematic analysis to explore latent and semantic themes. Conclusions drawn from the dataset include the restrictive nature of the prison setting being a barrier to promoting attachment. An increase in parenting classes, substance use programming, and mental health treatment was seen as beneficial for supporting attachment. Promoting childhood normalcy and having access to nature and play things was seen as integral to the development of a prison nursery program. A prison nursery was seen as feasible within a smaller correctional facility in the northeast. Potential positive social change resulting from these findings include development of specific interventions to maintain mother–infant bonding in small departments of correction.