Assessing the Emotional Impact of Virtual Prison Environments on Incarcerated Persons and Staff
Comparing Existing Architectural Conditions and Proposed Renovations
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 23312451 |
|---|---|
| Authors | A Cancer (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore), Antonia Sorge (0000-0002-2372-594X, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, corresponding author), C Burdese (Expert System (Italy)), G Bianchi (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore), L Antichi (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore), A Antonietti (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore), G Riva (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore), F Sanchez (0000-0002-1176-2751, Lombardia Informatica (Italy)), P Buffa (Federal Penitentiary Service), E Saita (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 11 |
| Pages | 100453 |
| Publication date | 2026-07-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Wellbeing Space and Society (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2666-5581 • E-ISSN: 2666-5581 |
| Publisher | Elsevier BV (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.wss.2026.100453 |
| OpenAlex | W7171528308 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 49 |
Prison environments are complex institutional settings in which architectural design shapes daily activities, roles, and social interactions, and substandard conditions can negatively affect the well-being of both incarcerated persons and staff. The present study examined emotional and psychophysiological responses (electrodermal activity) to existing architectural conditions (EC) and proposed renovated environments (PR) to explore how spatial configurations are experienced by those living and working in prison. Seventy-one participants from Bassone Prison, Como, Italy – including incarcerated persons (n = 32) and prison staff (n = 39) – completed immersive virtual reality sessions in which they were exposed to EC and PR environments while self-report and physiological measures were recorded. Results indicated that PR environments elicited more positive emotional evaluations and more positive perceptions of environmental qualities than EC environments, with these effects observed consistently across both groups. Physiological responses also differed between conditions, suggesting arousal patterns aligned with perceived improvements in the renovated environments. These findings highlight the potential of architectural renovations to improve the well-being and experiences of both incarcerated individuals and prison staff, underscoring the importance of environment-focused interventions in correctional settings.
Affect (linguistics) · Perspective (graphical) · Prison · Psychological intervention · Recidivism · Work (physics) · Crime Patterns and Interventions · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis · Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual Offending
Exploring the Relationship between Prison Social Climate and Reoffending
Simulator Sickness Questionnaire
Autonomic nervous system activity in emotion
Measuring emotion
G*Power 3
Visual perception of the built environment in virtual reality
Benefits of Art therapy in Prison Population with a Diagnosis of Mental Illness
Prison Overcrowding and Harsh Conditions
Perceived Environmental Quality Indicators as Health-Enabling Elements Within Prisons
The “Pains of Employment”? Connecting Air and Sound Quality to Correctional Officer Experiences of Health and Wellness in Prison Space
Prisoner Lives Cut Short
Let’s Work Together — Occupational Factors and Their Correlates to Prison Climate and Inmates’ Attitudes Towards Treatment
Mental Health in Prison
Built Environment Evaluation in Virtual Reality Environments—A Cognitive Neuroscience Approach
Ethical Prison Architecture
Examining the intersection of carceral space and well‐being
Semantic Differential Technique in the Comparative Study of Cultures1
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |