Cultural Competency in Carceral Settings

Our interviews with residents overwhelmingly suggest that staff in many prisons/jails are not acting in ways consistent with cultural competency. Two of the biggest issues relate to race/ethnicity and gender/sexual identity. In this episode, we present, with sensitivity, information that may help correctional staff understand these issues in a deeper and more meaningful way, using current research to discuss some key facets of this important topic.

Download the one-pager (PDF).

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Brooke, J. M., Biernat, K., Shamaris, N. & Skerrett, V. (2022). The experience of transgender women prisoners serving a sentence in a male prison: A systematic review and meta-synthesis. The Prison Journal, 102(5), 542–564.

Infante, A. A., Morse, S. J., Fahmy, C., & Wright, K. A. (2023). Racial politics in the contemporary prison society: The importance of race and ethnicity to prison social organization. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 50(4), 600–623.

Jenness, V., Sexton, L. & Sumner, J. (2019). Sexual victimization against transgender women in prison: Consent and coercion in context. Criminology, 57(4), 603–631.

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This project was supported by Grant [5PBJA-22-AG-00031-MUMU] awarded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. The Bureau of Justice Assistance is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the National Institute of Justice, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Office for Victims of Crime, and Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking. Points of view or opinions in this podcast are those of the host and the research team and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.