Four Major Themes In Everyday Prison Life

The analysis resulted in the formulation of four major themes or “essences” (Table 8), supported by themed clusters which were derived from “formulated meaning units”. In this respect, I was looking to elicit participants’ ‘systems of relevances’ (Shutz, 1944) in other words, the interpretive and meaning making work the respondents are engaged in.

Major themes from the respondents narratives
1. Smoking - the social norm of everyday prison life
2. Tobacco - as mechanism for control and enforcement
3. The prison system as enabler/dis-enabler of smoking and exposure to second-hand smoke
4. Tobacco - as informal part of the prison economy

Table 8: Major meaning units (essences)

There are a number of things to note. Firstly, the major

Awaiting trial, isolation from family or friends, feelings of helplessness and the removal of privileges placed intolerable pressures on prisoners and the strict prison regimes did little to help alleviate stress or boredom. James (Box 1) articulated this well through his description of another prisoner’s feelings of helplessness at not being around at the birth of his child. However, at times, these emotions could be so intense that, in the absence of a smoke, resulted alarmingly in self-harm. This was illustrated by Mark (Box 1).

Box 1: Texts illustrating the role and functions of smoking in prison
“For me, I don’t smoke rolled tobacco on the outside, I know this sounds weird, I have two kids, when I get home from work I go into the garden…you are more conscious about your surroundings and whose looking at you, who you are with so you don’t smoke as much…...but here it is a far more relaxing environment, I lie down and relax when I smoke. “
(Abdul, prisoner, age 29)
”They feel helpless, they are isolated. For example this guy, his girlfriend is ‘bout to give birth, he can’t offer her any support, he isn’t there for his children, it is a sentence for them too, can’t help them financially neither, smoking

It is with no surprise, therefore, that participants perceived that a smoking ban may result in unintended and severe consequences. Joshua (Box 3) drew analogies to “ticking time bombs” to explain how, in a place where stress levels already run high, the prison may explode if prisoners were forced to stop smoking and face nicotine withdrawal on mass. Most believed the staffing levels were inadequate to deal with the consequences of this and this meant inevitably there would be repercussions on staff, prisoners and the prison. Whilst outcomes such as suicide, riots and vandalism were mentioned the potential loss of association (free time) was of particular importance. This was often described personally and appeared to flow consequentially. Unrest means lock down, which means lack of association time, which means more time in the cell, which means more stress, which means more frustration over little things, meaning more violence, meaning another unrest, meaning another lock down…..the cycle continues. Joshua, Mark, Azzaca, and John’s narratives (Box 3) illustrate the different