Abstract
Caged Emotions: Adaptation, Control and Solitude in Prison by Ben Laws focuses on the study of emotions in prison settings, integrating approaches from criminology, sociology, carceral geography and psychology. The book highlights the need for criminological knowledge production that examines the complete spectrum of emotions within prison environments.
Laws’ book indicates a significant shift. Instead of focusing solely on the pains of imprisonment, it encompasses a holistic understanding of emotions, feelings and affects in prison. Similar analyses have already been made, for example in the work of Chamberlen, about emotions and identities (2018), and in my own work (Vasiliou, 2020) in relation to pleasure and pain. Laws contributes significantly to these perspectives by engaging with a rich range of themes, thus creating a comprehensive continuum of emotional experiences within the prison context.
Caged Emotions is divided into two main sections and comprises seven chapters in total. The first section, consisting of five chapters, presents a comparative analysis of emotions in women and men's prisons in the UK. The parallel reading of emotions sheds light on intriguing patterns within these distinct prison settings. For instance, Laws agrees with other studies that while women are often considered more capable of expressing emotions, both genders use similar emotional regulation techniques. He supports the view that this phenomenon is connected to an extent with institutionalized forces. The second section, one of the most important contributions of the work, comprising two chapters, ventures into the intricate terrain of emotions within a segregation unit at HMP Whitemoor, a high-security prison. Laws explores the motivations behind the desire for solitary confinement and explains that the decision-making process about segregation is both complex and ambiguous.
The second chapter, ‘Emotions before Prison’, traces participants’ traumatic life experiences, providing a compelling account of the patterns of suffering endured before their incarceration. Through this exploration, Laws elucidates the mechanisms of emotional suppression, highlighting three essential shifts for a deeper understanding of this inhibitory process. First, Laws challenges the notion that emotional suppression is exclusively a toxic masculine trait, revealing that both genders engage in various forms of emotional suppression. Second, he demonstrates that the hiding of emotions is a circumstance-tailored approach. By linking this masking process to prisoners’ prior life circumstances, Laws offers valuable insights into the biographies of incarcerated individuals, portraying their emotional state in prison within a wider, fuller life narrative of deprivation and trauma. Last, Laws emphasizes that emotional suppression is not merely a consequence, but often a deliberate process and a goal in itself.
The third chapter, ‘Emotions and ‘the Self’ in Prison’, introduces an analytical framework described as a ‘fluid and container’ structure (p. 26). Looking beyond negative contexts, this approach reframes emotions to encompass a broader spectrum that includes positive feelings such as pleasure and joy. Laws’ research concludes that individuals in prison employ diverse strategies to manage and express their emotions—regardless of gender.
Emotional suppression is unsurprisingly a prevalent coping mechanism across prisons. However, Laws’ study goes beyond this finding, revealing that emotional suppression is not influenced solely by psychological factors but also by pre-existing institutional forces. Prisoners’ narratives show many had adopted these mechanisms prior to incarceration, emphasizing that the prison environment intensified these strategies of emotional restraint.
A pivotal aspect highlighted in Laws’ study pertains to institutionalized psychological practices within English and Welsh prisons. In 2005, a process known as Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) was implemented to identify and monitor individuals at risk of self-harm and suicide. Laws’ participants articulate that ACCT procedures, ostensibly designed for the prisoners’ well-being, serve the prison machinery more than the incarcerated individuals. One participant, Lacey, shares that entering the ACCT process is a decision prisoners often ‘regret straightaway’ (p. 30). Participating in the process can leave a mark on one's record, influencing parole outcomes. Crewe's (2011) concept of the ‘tightness’ of the penal system resonates here. Laws’ findings indicate that psychological care, seemingly a source of relief and support, is institutionalized in a manner that transforms seeking such care into yet another emotional negotiation within the prisoners’ inner selves. This revelation challenges prevailing assumptions, offering readers a critical perspective on the complex interplay of emotions, institutional care structures and individual agency within the prison context.
In Chapter 4, ‘Relational Emotions in Prison’, Laws shifts from individual emotions to exploring the social and relational aspects, recognizing the potential ambiguity in such distinctions. The discussion revolves around the interactions prisoners have with officers and staff, their family and relatives and fellow inmates in the social dimension of emotions.
In expressing their emotions to staff, prisoners had different perspectives. Some viewed it as a way to build compassionate connections for better care, while others refrained due to mistrust or feeling pathologized by the mental health team. Expressing anger could lead to punitive measures like the opening of an ACCT. Sharing emotions with family varied in impact, causing anxiety or relief depending on the relationship. Emotional suppression plays a crucial role in these family dynamics. Prisoners most commonly share emotions with each other, using a variety of channels, such as the therapeutic communities in HMP Send. The prison also displayed visible romantic or otherwise intimate connections among women, consistent with prior studies on women's prisons (e.g. Simpson et al., 2019).
In Ranby Prison, emotions find expression through indirect means like sharing survival resources, food and activities. Humor plays a crucial role in both prisons, facilitating the co-creation of a positive environment within the constraints of prison conditions, spatial configurations and fellow prisoners’ moods. Laws illustrates collective emotions as spreading ‘like waves of energy’ (p. 102).
In the fifth chapter, ‘Space and Emotions’, Laws explores the link between emotions and space by categorizing prisons into living spaces, hostile zones and free spaces, the latter including libraries, classrooms, workshops, visit halls, chapels and gyms. These free spaces, with characteristics less reminiscent of a typical prison, are complemented by the concept of ‘therapeutic spaces’. Interestingly, some prisoners perceive these areas as coercive and overly psychological, while others find them transformative and capable of providing pleasure.
Next, Laws highlights how the prison environment and its confined spaces can intensify negative emotions and destructive feelings. The second section, consisting of Chapters 6 and 7, introduces solitary confinement. Chapter 6, titled ‘Motivation for Segregation’, delves into why certain prisoners opt for solitary confinement, a question that may provoke tension among activists and scholars working to end the practice. What follows in Chapter 7, ‘The Body and Solitary Confinement’, is an exploration of solitary confinement's severe impact on both the body and the brain. In Chapter 6, Laws contends that research on solitary confinement neglects the overall prison context, overlooking prisoners’ motives for seeking isolation. He argues that prisoners’ reasons for segregation are intricate and unclear. For some, solitary confinement serves as a ‘lesser evil’ (p. 156), allowing prisoners to distance themselves from potentially more harmful groups or practices. Laws illustrates the complex and subjective nature of determining harm, emphasizing the agency prisoners gain in this decision-making process. In Chapter 7, Laws explores the connection between the body, emotions and solitary confinement. The chapter delves into the impact of damaged bodies, with prisoners sharing stories of injuries and scars, some self-inflicted and others from altercations. The focus then shifts to how exercise and diet become survival tools in segregation, helping prisoners regain control over their bodies and emotions. The chapter concludes by examining the spiritual aspect, discussing practices like faith and meditation. While some turn to religious activities for psychological well-being, Laws remains skeptical about practices like yoga, which, despite their benefits, may mask underlying issues within prison settings.
Caged Emotions addresses a crucial gap in the study of prison emotions, exploring a broad spectrum without diminishing any single emotion's significance. The chapters on solitary confinement motivations provide a noteworthy contribution, redirecting the focus from segregation harms to the broader prison conditions prompting voluntary isolation. The discussions on space and emotions offer valuable insights into the geography of punishment and its impact on prisoners’ emotional landscapes. His perspective offers a fresh lens through which to examine the complexities of emotions and their suppression in carceral environments. Through Laws’ work, readers are encouraged to challenge preconceived notions about prisoners and prisons and engage in a profound analysis of the multifaceted emotional landscape in prison settings.
One aspect in which the book arguably falls short, however, is in adequately portraying the researcher's emotions and positionality. As I read, I found myself wondering about the challenges the researcher faced in the male and female prisons, and how the male gaze may have influenced the research in these settings. Despite this potential shortcoming, the book is a unique and invaluable resource for those exploring the emotional dynamics of women's and men's prisons, providing a nuanced analysis of prisoners’ emotional states and subjectivity formation.
