For the last two decades, in the midst of a world-wide prison population growth, the value of correctional architecture as a catalyst for positive outcomes has pushed forward-thinking architects to reassess classical models, rethink prison designs and experiment with innovative spatial concepts embedded with theories from sociology, psychology, and even ecology. These better align the physical plant of correctional facilities with the concept of humane treatment and contemporary priorities of inmate rehabilitation and successful reintegration.
The purpose of this blog is to contribute to the discussion about the role that modern facility design can achieve in the topic of correctional reform from the perspective of architects and planners, such as myself. To that end, I reached out to experts in the field, including an environmental psychologist, leading justice planners and several architectural firms internationally known for their sensitive and humane approach to prison design, and asked them to describe in a few paragraphs, the optimal spatial attributes of a prison in which architecture and rehabilitative ideals could operate in harmony (see note 2).