DOI: 10.3886/icpsr33971.v1
title: Addressing Sexual Violence in Prisons: A National Snapshot of Approaches and Highlights of Innovative Strategies, 2004-2005: [United States]
title: Version 1

description: These data are part of NACJD's Fast Track Release and are distributed as they were received from the data depositor. The files have been zipped by NACJD for release, but not checked or processed except for the removal of direct identifiers. Users should refer to the accompanying readme file for a brief description of the files available with this collection and consult the investigator(s) if further information is needed.


Before the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) of 2003, it was not clear the extent to which state departments of corrections (DOCs) were addressing sexual violence in systematic ways. In fact, little information existed about what strategies were being put into practice in prison systems across the country. PREA changed the way DOCs addressed prison sexual violence (PSV). Mandatory recordkeeping and a push for eliminating such incidents moved
many DOCs to develop specific responses to PSV or to further refine approaches already in place. The purpose of this project was to provide a national snapshot of DOC initiatives to address PSV, as well as to identify specific practices that seemed to be, in the absence of formal evaluations, particularly promising or innovative in nature.


Researchers conducted three tasks: (1) The Survey of State Correctional Administrators (SSCA) involving written surveys and follow-up phone interviews with leaders of state DOCs. During the survey, state administrators described the state's overall approach to PSV and nominated specific strategies as particularly promising; (2) The Survey of Promising Practices (SPP) involving phone interviews with DOC representatives who spoke about promising practices nominated during the SSCA. Interviews were conducted with facility directors, service providers, or other state personnel affiliated with nominated approaches; and (3) Case studies involving site visits to states that researchers determined could provide the most informative lessons on addressing sexual violence in prison to the largest audience of practitioners, researchers, and policymakers.


The collection includes 2 Access databases, one each for the SSCA (ASCA_4_6_2006.directors.mdb) and the SSP (ASCA_FAC_4_6_2006.prompractices.mdb).  The data related to the Case Studies are not available at this time.
description: The purpose of this project was to provide a national snapshot of Departments of Corrections initiatives to address prison sexual violence, as well as to identify specific practices that seemed to be, in the absence of formal evaluations, particularly promising or innovative in nature.
description: For file ASCA_4_6_2006.directors.mdb, researchers conducted a Survey of State Correctional Administrators (SSCA) in November 2004, including both a written survey and a follow-up telephone interview.  All 50 state Departments of Corrections (DOC) received the written survey that asked them to document ongoing programs and policies around sexual violence in prison. The survey aimed to provide a forum for states to share what they are doing and their views on which efforts were effective, noteworthy, or problematic. Surveys were sent to the head of the agency, but some states chose to have other or multiple people complete the questionnaire. States completed and returned the survey between December, 2004 and March, 2005.


Once a state's completed written survey was received, researchers asked DOC leaders to participate in a follow-up phone interview. During this follow-up interview, respondents were asked to clarify and expand on their survey responses and to nominate specific promising and innovative practices in their state. Phone interviews were completed between January and June 2005.


For the Survey of Promising Practices (SSP - file ASCA_FAC_4_6_2006.prompractices.mdb), during the SSCA, state correctional leaders identified programs and practices as promising. In some cases, one aspect of a facility's response, like inmate education or victim services, was identified as promising. In other cases, states nominated multiple aspects of a particular facility's response or agency-wide initiatives, such as a staff training curriculum.


Between March and July 2005, researchers conducted the survey including phone interviews with facility directors, service providers, or state personnel affiliated with nominated approaches. Some officials spoke about more than one of the nominated initiatives during a single interview. Prior to placing a call, researchers asked the state leaders who had completed the interviews from the SSCA to call personnel associated with the program(s) they nominated to introduce the study and inform personnel that they may be contacted about their prison sexual violence (PSV) programming.  In most cases, personnel associated with nominated programs chose to have more than one person complete the interview. Interviews typically lasted between 30 and 60 minutes. While the goal of the surveys administered under the SSCA was to capture a snapshot of all aspects of a state's response to PSV, interviews from the SSP focused on capturing the details of particular innovative approaches.
description: The Survey of State Correctional Administrators (SSCA) data (ASCA_4_6_2006.directors.mdb) included questions about inmate-against-inmate, staff-against-inmate, and inmate-against-staff sexual violence and covered the following topics: state policies, prevention approaches, investigation and response, staff training, documentation of incidents, and victim services.


The Survey of Promising Practices (SSP) data (ASCA_FAC_4_6_2006.prompractices.mdb) collected general information regarding the facility, the specifics of the identified program, staff training, other facility initiatives, and barriers to implementation.
description: Presence of Common Scales: 
					
Survey of State Correctional Administrators (SSCA - file ASCA_4_6_2006.directors.mdb): Several Likert-type scales were used.


Survey of Promising Practices (SSP - file ASCA_FAC_4_6_2006.prompractices.mdb): None
description: Response Rates: 
					
Survey of State Correctional Administrators (SSCA - file ASCA_4_6_2006.directors.mdb): A response rate of 90 percent was obtained as 45 out of 50 states responded.


Survey of Promising Practices (SSP - file ASCA_FAC_4_6_2006.prompractices.mdb): During the Survey of State Correctional Administrators, state correctional leaders identified 67 programs and practices as promising.  Two programs' staff did not respond to researchers' repeated attempts to conduct the survey for a response rate of 97 percent.
description: Datasets: 
					
						DS1: Dataset
description: Prison Rape Elimination Act Data Series
description: paper and pencil interview (PAPI), on-site questionnaire, telephone interview
					These data are part of NACJD's Fast Track Release and are distributed as they were received from the data depositor. The files have been zipped by NACJD for release, but not checked or processed except for the removal of direct identifiers. Users should refer to the accompanying readme file for a brief description of the files available with this collection and consult the investigator(s) if further information is needed.Discrepancies exist between the number of cases in the data files and the number of cases listed in the final report.  ICPSR was unable to reconcile these discrepancies.The data related to the Case Studies are not available at this time.
description: Survey of State Correctional Administrators (ASCA_4_6_2006.directors.mdb): The Department of Corrections for each state in the United States between November, 2004 and June, 2005.


Survey of Promising Practices (ASCA_FAC_4_6_2006.prompractices.mdb): Initiatives undertaken by state Departments of Corrections in the United States prior to March, 2005.

				   		Smallest Geographic Unit: state
description: For the Survey of State Correctional Administrators (SSCA - file ASCA_4_6_2006.directors.mdb), the Department of Corrections in each state received the written survey that asked them to document ongoing programs and policies around sexual violence in prison.


For the Survey of Promising Practices (SSP - file ASCA_FAC_4_6_2006.prompractices.mdb), during the interviews from the SSCA, state correctional leaders identified 67 programs and practices as promising.