The aim of the current study was to examine if prisoner characteristics (personal characteristics and prison climate) and prison environment were related to prisoner misconduct, using data from a nationwide prospective cohort study examining the experience of prison climate in the Netherlands ( N = 4,427). The results indicated that both personal characteristics and certain (social) domains of prison climate, such as the quality of staff–prisoner relationships, were related to prisoner misconduct, as well as prison regime. Furthermore, it was shown that registration data, which underestimate misconduct, may be (more than self-reported data) influenced by unit-level factors, such as regime characteristics. When using registration data, it is therefore particularly important to properly control for unit-level influences.

Purpose The Life in Custody (LIC) Study is a nationwide prospective cohort study examining the quality of prison life in the Netherlands. The purpose of this paper is to describe Dutch prisoners’ perceptions of prison climate, as well as differences across regimes. Design/methodology/approach The target population of the study consisted of all male and female adult prisoners in the Netherlands who were incarcerated in various regimes in a total of 28 prisons, between January and April 2017. An intensive and personal recruitment strategy was employed. Participants completed a detailed survey, the prison climate questionnaire (PCQ). Self-reported information on a variety of topics was collected, including perceived prison climate, well-being and self-reported behaviour. Findings In total, 4,938 prisoners participated in the survey, which amounts to a high response rate of 81 per cent. Analyses show that respondents’ characteristics are almost identical to those of non-respondents. Ratings of prison climate vary across domains and regimes, with more positive scores for minimum-security regimes. Practical implications A detailed methodological approach is described that can be adopted to achieve a high response rate with survey research among prisoners. The paper alerts researchers and practitioners to a large ongoing study and first findings on prison climate in the Netherlands. The PCQ can be requested from the authors and used in future research (internationally) to gain information about the perceived quality of prison life. The paper gives insight in how different regimes are associated with differences in perceived prison climate. Collaboration on the research project can be sought with the authors. Originality/value Findings of the LIC study illustrate the value of having data on prison climate. Results of the study will contribute to more knowledge on imprisonment and what can be done to improve the humane treatment of offenders by the criminal justice system. Moreover, knowledge about the methodology of the study may enable future comparative research on prison climate.

Little is known about the relative influence of shared and individual perceptions of prison climate on adjustment to incarceration. This study investigated the relationship between prison climate and well-being among a sample of 4,538 adults incarcerated in the Netherlands. Prison climate dimensions were considered both as prison unit-level variables and as individual-level perceptions. Multilevel analysis results showed that most variance for well-being is found at the individual rather than the unit level. This implies that it does not make much of a difference for well-being in which prison unit someone resides. Positive effects of prison climate on well-being were primarily found for individual perceptions of prison climate, rather than for the aggregate unit measures. More research is needed to determine whether this finding holds true in other countries. The findings confirm the importance of disentangling the contribution of prison climate at the individual and group level.

Purpose The Prison Project is a nationwide prospective cohort study examining the development of criminal behavior and other life circumstances before, during, and after detention in the Netherlands. Methods The target population of the study consisted of all men, aged 18-65 years, and born in the Netherlands, who entered pre-trial detention between October 2010 and April 2011. Participants were questioned repeatedly during detention and six and 24 months after release. Self-reported information on a variety of topics was collected at each measurement, including demographics, lifestyle, personality traits, self-control, attitudes towards criminal justice actors, experiences during detention, and different life domains (i.e., recidivism, employment, financial and housing situation, health, family situation, social networks). Moreover, detailed longitudinal information was gathered from different official registration systems.

Various survey measures have been developed to assess prison climate. Because these instruments have shortcomings, the Prison Climate Questionnaire (PCQ) was developed to measure prison climate and its related domains across a broad prison population. In this article, the instrument and its psychometric qualities are presented. Results show that the PCQ’s factor structure, reliability, and validity were in all aspects satisfactory. It was concluded that the PCQ is a promising instrument that can be used to measure and monitor individuals’ perceptions on the quality of prison life.