Competing for Control: Gangs and the Social Order of Prisons (Paperback)

David C. Pyrooz (author), Scott H. Decker (author)

£26.99

Paperback 310 Pages / Published: 29/08/2019

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Synopsis

Pyrooz and Decker pull apart the bars on prison gangs to uncover how they compete for control. While there is much speculation about these gangs, there is little solid research. This book draws on interviews with 802 inmates - half of whom were gang members - in two Texas prisons; one of the largest samples of its kind. Using this data, the authors explore how gangs organize and govern, who joins gangs and how they get out, the dark side of gang activities including misconduct and violence, the ways in which gang membership spills onto the street, and the direct and indirect links between the street and prison gangs. Competing for Control captures the nature of gangs in a time of transition, as prison gangs become more horizontal and their power is diffused across groups. There is no study like this one.

Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9781108735742
Number of pages: 310
Weight: 470 g
Dimensions: 228 x 151 x 18 mm

MEDIA REVIEWS

'Competing for Control is a very important work which will surely generate significant discussions in virtually any classroom. It is a must-read for those of us in academe, as well as anyone who works in a correctional facility (or perhaps even resides in one).' Robert M. Worley, Theory in Action
'This fascinating book takes readers inside the prison system and explains how it operates on a day-to-day basis.' E. Smith, Choice
'Competing for Control is a very important work which will surely generate significant discussions in virtually any classroom. It is a must-read for those of us in academe, as well as anyone who works in a correctional facility (or perhaps even resides in one).' Robert M. Worley, Theory in Action
'Overall, then, this is a theoretically strong, well-written, and insightful book, which will no doubt become a key text for criminologists and penologists in the years to come.' Dev R Maitra, British Journal of Community Justice