Towards an objective measure of discrimination in jail: punishment indicators and index

Abstract

Most women imprisoned in Spain are serving their sentences in mixed jails designed by men and for men. Apart from suff ering exceedingly hard regime, security and safety conditions above their own dangerousness and tending to penalize their potential re-entry, the “patriarchy culture” reproduces in prison its discriminatory nature against them and at times may even punish them more severely than their male counterparts. Although this discrimination had already been revealed (Carlen & Worrall, 2004; Almeda, 2003), this article presents a method created ad hoc that can be measured in an empirical and objective manner. Both punishment indicators and the index described have been developed within the framework of the “SINDISCRIP” (“Sistema de Indicadores de Discriminación en Instituciones Penitenciarias) research project, the main purpose of which was the creation of an information system whereby it could be possible to verify the potential existence of discrimination between men and women and the diff erent Spanish correctional centers. Likewise, this system other indicators used to examine the areas of health, work, education or life conditions had been approached.