Understanding Polyvictimization in Prison: Prevalence and Predictors Among Men Inmates in Spain

Abstract

Victimization-physical, sexual, and emotional-is part of prison life for a sizable proportion of incarcerated people. Research has primarily focused on the prevalence and predictors of physical or sexual victimization inside prisons located in the United States. Very little prison-based victimization research has been conducted in other countries, and even less has examined the clustering patterns of victimization (referred to as polyvictimization), and whether different demographic, behavioral health, and criminal risk factors are associated with polyvictimization. This article explores variation in victimization patterns during incarceration in Spain, and whether there is variation in the demographic, behavioral, and criminal risk factors predicting one type (physical, sexual, or emotional); two types (physical and sexual, physical and emotional, or sexual and emotional); or three types (physical, sexual, and emotional), as well as the number of different types of victimization distinguished by type of perpetrator. Self-report data were collected from 2,484 male inmates housed in eight adult prisons in Spain. More than half the sample reported at least one type of victimization, and one quarter reported two or more types of victimization. Polyvictimization was found to be strongly associated with prior childhood and adulthood victimization experienced in the community. These findings have significant policy and practice implications.

Associations Among Psychological Distress, Adverse Childhood Experiences, Social Support, and Resilience in Incarcerate Men

“…Psychological sensitivities developed as a consequence to childhood emotional abuse may be triggered by the prison environment itself, as well as by the elevated risk of predation inside prison. Studies examining polyvictimization in prisons have found high levels of emotional abuse among incarcerated men (Caravaca-Sánchez & Wolff, 2018; Listwan, Daigle, Hartman, & Guastaferro, 2014). High rates of reported emotional abuse inside prison would suggest that the prison environment has the potential to both heighten preexisting psychological distress and provoke new symptoms of distress.…”

“…In a study based on a sample of approximately 7,000 male residents in state prisons, more than half (57%) reported childhood physical abuse and one in 10 reported childhood sexual abuse (Wolff et al, 2009). Similarly, Caravaca-Sánchez and Wolff (2018), based on a sample of 2,484 male prison residents, found emotional abuse was the most frequently reported type of prison-based abuse, with more than one third of male respondents reporting emotional abuse during the past 6 months of their incarceration. This same study found the risk of experiencing multiple types of victimization in prison increased significantly with childhood emotional abuse.…”

Is Sexual Assault a Problem in Greek Prisons? Initial Evidence from a Greek Male Prison

“…This is another common measure of the importation model, examined very often as part of the history of violence to assist in the estimation of risk scores [44]. Its contribution as a risk factor to the interpretation of sexual victimization has been clearly demonstrated in recent literature [18]. This could probably be attributed to problematic adaptive emotion regulation abilities, which decrease individuals' recognition of impending danger or make their vulnerability more visible to perpetrators.…”

“…A total of 9.6% of former U.S. state prisoners reported sexual victimization during their latest period of incarceration [17]. Apart from Australia and USA, research from other parts of the world on risk factors of victimization is scarce, especially regarding demographic, behavioral health, and criminal parameters [18]. In fact, the first population-based study on male sexual misconduct in Australia was only published in 2016 [19] while data from Europe are scarce and very local.…”

Incarcerated Women in Spain: The Salience of Traumatic Exposure

“…Questions regarding adverse emotional, sexual, and physical childhood experiences were adapted from research conducted by Wolff & Shi, (2012) in U.S. prisons and the Lifetime Trauma and Victimization History (LTVH) instrument developed by Widom et al (2005). Similar to prior research among incarcerated samples in Spain (Caravaca-Sánchez & Wolff, 2018), questions measuring emotional and sexual victimization from Wolff et al (2012) and questions measuring physical victimization from LTVH instrument were utilized. Rather than measuring emotional victimization by abandonment as Wolff & Shi (2012): “Did anyone ever abandon you?”, the current research measured emotional victimization by response to the following question: “Did anyone threaten you in a face-to-face confrontation prior to age 18?” Participants who answered affirmatively were classified as having been emotionally victimized in their childhood (1 = yes, 0 = no).…”