In chapter 18 of Corrections in America, the author summarizes the characteristics and the trends of the adult female prison population. The author also describes the characteristics of female inmates and issues, challenges, and barriers faced by female inmates. In addition, this chapter outlines the history of women's prisons and explains the concept of co-gender institutions. The female prison population has grown extremely fast. Even though they represent only about 7 percent of prison inmates, the numbers of female inmates are continuously growing. According to the author, few female offenders commit violent crime and few are violent in confinement facilities. No one knows for certain on the reasons why the female population has increased