“Cardboard gangsters”, “in crowd” and “no control”: a case study of autism spectrum disorder in the prison environment

“Cardboard gangsters”, “in crowd” and “no control”: a case study of autism spectrum disorder in the prison environment Clare Sarah Allely, Toni Wood Journal of Intellectual Disabilities and Offending Behaviour, Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print, pp.- The purpose of this paper is to add to the relatively limited existing literature exploring the experience of individuals with autism spectrum disorder in the prison environment. Prisoners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) need to be identified in order that they are given the necessary and appropriate support and safeguards. It is increasingly recognised that, for individuals with ASD, prison can be more challenging. This can be due to ASD traits which can make problems occur in everyday life. Some of these ASD traits include: obsessions, compulsions and difficulties in communicating with others. There is increasing recognition that adults with ASD who are in prison are more vulnerable to bullying, social isolation, sexual victimisation and exploitation confrontations with other prisoners. Given this, more research is warranted in this area highlighting the specific needs and challenges of individuals with ASD in the prison. This paper is a case study of Mr C.T., a British Citizen, who is currently serving a life sentence (discretionary). Mr C.T. has spent more than 10 years in prison. At the time of completing the questionnaire for the present study, Mr C.T. was 51 years of a...
Source: Journal of Intellectual Disabilities and Offending Behaviour - Category: Criminology Authors: Source Type: research