Healthy prison cultures: factors influencing male prisoners’ engagement in exercise and subsequent healthy behaviours
International Journal of Prison Health
ISSN: 2977-0254
Article publication date: 15 December 2023
Issue publication date: 6 February 2024
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors which influence male prisoners’ motivation for, and engagement in, exercise and subsequent healthy behaviours.
Design/methodology/approach
The first authors conducted 20 semi-structured interviews with male prisoners inside an English medium-security male prison. Interviews were recorded and transcribed, themes were identified using thematic analysis and a critical realist perspective applied to understand objective processes behind prisoners’ experiences and shared meanings of exercise and engaging in healthy behaviours in prison.
Findings
Emerging themes indicate that in the context of healthy behaviours male prisoners aspired to a masculine ideal that was characterised by a culture of either adaptive behaviours, or maladaptive behaviours. The former fostered an adaptive exercise culture which promoted psychological well-being through an autonomy-supportive environment, consequently internalising motivation and minimising perceived barriers to engaging in healthy behaviours. Conversely, a culture of maladaptive behaviours fostered a maladaptive exercise culture which led to negative psychological well-being, underpinned by external forms of motivation which emphasised barriers to engaging in healthy behaviours.
Practical implications
Findings emphasise the need for prisons to promote an internal perceived locus of control for male prisoners when engaging in healthy behaviours.
Originality/value
The authors adopt a rare interdisciplinary approach combining a psychological theory of motivation and criminological perspectives of prison culture to understand how best to minimise the impact of prisons as an institution on the psychological well-being of male prisoners.
Keywords
Citation
Hammond, H., Meek, R. and Glorney, E. (2024), "Healthy prison cultures: factors influencing male prisoners’ engagement in exercise and subsequent healthy behaviours", International Journal of Prison Health, Vol. 20 No. 1, pp. 16-29. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOPH-01-2023-0003
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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