Insider perspective: Violence the view from a Pracademic Lens to PhD

This paper reflects on the difficulties and insights of an experienced offender manager. Skilled in offender management in custodial establishments and the community context, applying an insider researcher perspective to PhD research exploring Prison violence through the lens of prison staff.

The researcher underpins the acceptance and normalisation of violence, the shared experience faced by prison staff, vicariously and physically. The researcher will discuss the interpretation from a dual approach of management from inside the prison wall and from the outside of Probation.

Established in the experience of a pracademic, the paper argues the confines of offender management alone, cannot manage or reduce violence behind prison walls. The challenges, dynamics of the prison estate and individual practice, are hallmarks for risk reduction or risk escalation. The paper will follow the exploration of Pracademic practice to PhD the clash between theoretical perspective and the true reality.

The paper contributes to broader discussions within criminology on the importance of reflexivity, reflective practice and the link between academia and practice, particularly at a time, when prisons are facing significant challenges and increasing violence levels.

It is established within prisons, that violence is part of the prison make-up. However, the response and acceptance of violence is dependent, the paper will aim to discuss and critique the intersections of the constructed prison environment, and its link to increased violence and risk behaviour.

The causal link between academic perspectives on prison violence and the lived experience disconnects the aim to connect practice and academia through an pracademic lens.