Educated inside: a Scottish approach to prisoner education

Abstract

This thesis explores experiences of education for young men incarcerated in a Scottish prison. This study utilised the research of Erving Goffman (1961) as a starting point for understanding the social world of people in custody. The core objectives of this study are aimed at understanding the personal biography of prisoners, exploring how prisoners interpret and give meaning to learning and education in prison, the role of the institution in providing an environment of learning, and the potential outcomes of prisoners participating in learning and education in custody. This study also examines how and why learning may be impactful to prisoner identity, self-perception, and assesses the importance of formal and informal learning for people in custody. The findings of this study suggest that the prisoner experience is influenced by individual motivation, self-awareness, support systems, and relationships. This research further reflects a strong connection between student identity and positive traits (i.e. resilience, hope, and optimism) as directly correlated with learning in prison and also suggests that the choice to engage in learning while in prison is representative of ongoing change and individual growth. Research related to the prisoner experience is further enhanced by understanding that identity for people in custody may be perceived differently depending on the age and/or gender of the incarcerated person. Identity development may prove to be critical to combating stigma and labelling as a result of incarceration as this research identified that prisoners tend to associate themselves with socially constructed stereotypes as a method of coping.