Blog
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The new normal? When understaffed prisons becomes the rule rather than the exception
Norwegian prisons have been suffering from a long-term budget and staffing ‘crisis’; the effects of which we observed first-hand during fieldwork on the PriSUD and PRISONHEALTH projects in 2021. We question whether this crisis has become the new normal, and discuss the consequences of said cuts on dynamic security and rehabilitation.
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Challenges of estimating the number of crimes averted through incapacitation
It is often argued that one of the main ways prison may reduce crime is through its incapacitation effect. Incarcerating an offender reduces the individual’s ability to commit further crimes. However, due to methodological challenges, little is known about how many offenses may potentially be averted by sentencing an offender to prison. This newly published…
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Does treatment, education and work during the prison term have any significance for the risk of recidivism?
Since the turn of the millennium, levels of recidivism following a prison term have declined in Sweden. What is the importance of treatment, education and work during the prison term in reducing the risk of recidivism?
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Punishment Severity and Recidivism – A Study on Driving Under Influence
Does punishment severity matter for recidivism and social integration? This blog post by Karoliina Suonpää is based on a study on Driving Under Influence.
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Sex Slaves, Monsters, and Superheroes
Think about the last time you read, heard, or saw anything about sex trafficking. This story includes three set characters: a naïve girl-child, an evil foreigner, and a heroic rescuer. In my research, I have shown that the sex trafficking story follows the classic folk tale of ‘the maiden’s tragedy’. New blog post by Anita…
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Interviews During the Pandemic: Why Video Didn’t Kill the Audio Star
For the first article of my doctoral dissertation, I interviewed the police and prosecutors on their decision-making regarding victim offender mediation during 2020 and 2021. I planned to conduct the interviews face to face, as it enables a natural social setting for capturing lived experiences. Then the pandemic arrived, and I had to rethink my…
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As practice becomes policy; children become risky business
The current situation in Sweden with lethal violence among young males, has brought the best interest of the child into conflict with public concerns and security. This was notably highlighted in May 2023 when the Swedish government announced a public inquiry to decrease the age of criminal responsibility from fifteen years down to the age…
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“Healthy prisons” during disruptions
When researching on health and wellbeing in two Norwegian prisons, challenges such as Covid-19, austerity measures, and organizational changes became a central part of data. The findings illuminate distinct impacts these disruptions had on staff-prisoner relationships, underscoring the potential significance of prison size in understanding these variations.
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Spotlighting the probation meeting
Little is known about the content of meetings between formerly imprisoned persons and probation staff following imprisonment. This blogpost highlights lived experiences of these meetings, from the perspectives of persons who recently returned to the community. Not surprisingly, the interaction contributed to feelings of being captured in freedom. But above all, in these contexts, the…
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Let’s talk methods! The potential of app-based textual interviewing in criminology
Qualitative criminologists still rarely use technology when collecting research data, despite the fact that most people today communicate digitally on an everyday basis. Using text-based apps to conduct interviews is one example of how digital platforms can be used as an advantage both to conduct interviews and to recruit interviewees from hard-to-reach populations. New blog…