CIPsi (Center of Research in Psychology), School of Psychology, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal.
CIPsi (Center of Research in Psychology), School of Psychology, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal.
Int J Law Psychiatry. 2019 Sep-Oct;66:101490. doi: 10.1016/j.ijlp.2019.101490. Epub 2019 Aug 14.
Prison officers are the agents that have the most contact with prisoners during imprisonment and are essential for control prisoners at risk. Because of that, it is essential to understand their attitudes towards prisoners who self-harm because their attitudes predispose the behavior in situations of self-harm. Thus, our study aimed to explore the attitudes of prison officers regarding prisoners who self-harm. The results revealed that prison officers did not advocate harsh treatment for self-harming prisoners. However, they tend to reveal some difficulties in understanding the causes of self-harm, reproducing the negative myths referred to in the literature. They also tend to neglect the fact that these behaviors may, in some cases, culminate in suicide. These results highlight the need for specific training about this phenomenon, not only in prison officers initial training but also in continuing training, identifying issues of particular importance to address, such as interpersonal skills and behavioral strategies to deal with incarcerated individuals who self-harm. We also advocate for the importance of reinforcing prison officers' role as first-line responders, empowering these agents in their social responsibility towards prisoners well being and the way penal justice is implemented.
监狱官员是在监禁期间与囚犯接触最多的人员，是控制有风险的囚犯的重要力量。因此，了解他们对自残囚犯的态度至关重要，因为他们的态度会导致在自残情况下的行为。因此，我们的研究旨在探讨监狱官员对自残囚犯的态度。结果表明，监狱官员并不主张对自残囚犯采取严厉的对待方式。然而，他们往往难以理解自残的原因，这反映了文献中提到的一些负面刻板印象。他们也往往忽略了这些行为在某些情况下可能导致自杀的事实。这些结果强调了针对这一现象进行特定培训的必要性，不仅在监狱官员的初始培训中，而且在继续教育中，也需要确定一些特别重要的问题，例如人际交往技巧和行为策略，以应对自残的囚犯。我们还主张强调监狱官员作为一线应对者的角色，增强这些人员对囚犯福祉的社会责任意识，以及实施刑罚正义的方式。
