In this article, we explore patterns of prison violence in five Latin American countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, El Salvador, and Peru. Drawing on data from prisoner surveys conducted in 49 facilities with over 4,400 prisoners, we analyze the association between facility-level and individual-level rates of experiences of violence and the extent of perceived criminal activity committed in or ordered from inside prisons. Contrary to classical theory, neither poor prison conditions nor prior delinquent experience is directly associated with increased violence. Rather, we demonstrate that prison facilities with more widespread criminal activity inside have higher rates of prison violence. Further, within a given facility, prisoners with closer ties to criminal activity have more pre-incarceration criminal exposure and are also more likely to experience violence inside prison; this reflects research on victim–offender overlap. At a general level, our study shows that involvement in the sub-rosa economy of the prison increases one’s risk of violence in prison. We consider how common features of Latin American prisons—scarce state-provided resources, permeability to people on the outside, and more prisoner-led governance—explain these dynamics of violence inside prisons. Where prisoner-led governance is more consolidated—such as in Brazil and El Salvador—violence appears to be less common, even if criminal activity is prevalent, compared to countries where prison governance is combined or contested between authorities and prisoners. These findings suggest that prison violence reduction policies should respond to the real needs and strategies of incarcerated people rather than simply impose more control.

中文翻译：

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集中暴力：犯罪活动和治理对拉丁美洲监狱暴力的影响

在本文中，我们探讨了五个拉丁美洲国家的监狱暴力模式：阿根廷、巴西、智利、萨尔瓦多和秘鲁。根据在 49 个设施中对 4,400 多名囚犯进行的囚犯调查的数据，我们分析了设施级别和个人级别的暴力经历率与在监狱中犯下或从监狱内下令实施的犯罪活动程度之间的关联。与经典理论相反，无论是监狱条件差还是之前的犯罪经历都与暴力增加没有直接关系。相反，我们证明了内部犯罪活动更广泛的监狱设施的监狱暴力发生率更高。此外，在给定的设施内，与犯罪活动有更密切联系的囚犯在监禁前有更多的犯罪经历，也更有可能在监狱内经历暴力；这反映了对受害者-罪犯重叠的研究。总的来说，我们的研究表明，参与监狱的次要经济会增加一个人在监狱中遭受暴力的风险。我们考虑了拉丁美洲监狱的共同特征——国家提供的资源稀缺、对外部人员的渗透性以及更多由囚犯主导的治理——如何解释监狱内的这些暴力动态。在囚犯主导的治理更加巩固的地方——例如在巴西和萨尔瓦多——与监狱治理相结合或在当局和囚犯之间展开竞争的国家相比，暴力似乎不太常见，即使犯罪活动很普遍。