Ageing, Institutional Thoughtlessness, and Normalisation in Japan’s Prisons

Datos Bibliográficos

ID6192554
AutoresMasahiro Suzuki (0000-0002-7925-2141, College of Law, Criminology and Justice, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, Australia, autor de correspondencia), Akinori Otani (0000-0003-3304-0052, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Chiyoda-ku, Japan)
Año2024
Volumen48
Número4
Páginas363-374
Fecha de publicación2024-10-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaInternational Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0192-4036 • E-ISSN: 2157-6475
EditorialInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/01924036.2023.2188236
OpenAlexW4324046375
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas4
Referencias citadas53

Like other industrialised countries, Japan has experienced a rapid increase in the proportion of incarcerated older adults. This increase is problematic because prisons were not designed to accommodate the needs of the older adults who increasingly fill them, leading to immense financial, legal, and human costs as jurisdictions struggle to adapt to the demographic change. Some refer to this failure to adjust to changing demographics as “institutional thoughtlessness”. While a growing body of research points to concerns associated with the ageing trend, less work explicitly aims to understand the most effective ways to cope with the reality of the unprecedented number of older adults who are currently incarcerated. Using Japan as a case study, we argue that the misalignment between prison infrastructure and the changing physical and mental health needs of incarcerated people calls for a need to normalise prisons. Making prison life more similar to life outside of prison would reduce age-related risks like social isolation and dementia while improving the health, welfare, and reintegration of older adults

Criminology · Dementia · Demographics · Mental health · Political science · Prison · Psychiatry · Social isolation · Sociology · Welfare · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis · Demography · Gambling Behavior and Treatments · Homelessness and Social Issues · Law · Medicine · Psychology · Gerontology