1 21990). While the crime rate has increased, and the demand for prison space has increased, prison capacity has remained rela tively steady (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1990). One effect of the interaction of these three trends has been a shift in the prison population toward a much higher proportion of vio lent crime offenders (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1990).
For the correctional officers responsible for the adminis tration of prisons, and the maintenance of prisoner welfare, the increase in the proportion of violent offenders housed in the nation's prison facilities has created a nightmarish situa tion with respect to control, preservation of order, and main tenance of safety. The use of solitary confinement has been demonstrated as one effective weapon in the correction offi cer's arsenal for this purpose (Goldfarb, & Singer, 1988).
Unfortunately, solitary confinement also has detrimental psychological effects on prisoners subjected to the punishment (Silberman, 1990). American courts, while recognizing the detrimental psychological effects of the practice, have, never theless, refused to declare solitary confinement as a cruel and unusual punishment within the meaning of that term in the United States Constitution (Goldfard, & Singer, 1990). Pres sures for the abolition of solitary confinement, however, con tinue to grow.
The research question which the proposed research study will attempt to answer deals with the relationship between the adverse psychological effects of solitary confinement on pri soners, and the effectiveness of the punishment as a means of 3controlling violent inmates, preserving prison order, and main taining the safety of both prisoners and correctional officers. The research question is as follows: Does the value of the practice of solitary confinement to provide for control, order, and safety in the prison environment offset the harm caused to prisoners subjected to the practice...