The inmate subculture in American prisons: an overviewSubculture phenomena within prisonsTo be able to discuss the question of subculture prison inmate cultures, I will first need to discuss what subcultures are and the main reasons they form. First of all, the term subculture in general is much like a small culture within a larger culture, known as society, which is not always accepted by the members. Societies as a whole are very large and contain many individuals within them, and let's face it, it is human nature to group or congregate with individuals who share the same interests. This causes the whole to divide into smaller groups and this process is how subcultures form; However, if you take certain elements such as freedom of movement or security out of the equation, you will speed up and intensify the subculture process. Subcultures in Prison Prisons exist in this country as a means of administering retributive justice to those who break the laws of our society or to put it simply, prisons punish criminals who should receive more prison time of one year. There are two main subcultures within the prison walls: the Department of Corrections subculture (which includes the correctional officer, administrators, and all staff who work at the prison and return home to the end of his day) and the prisoners themselves. As you can imagine, both of these subcultures are dualistic in nature, which creates a very stressful environment for both sides of the fence. In prison, inmates experience the same conditions as those described in the previous paragraph, but more intensified and there are several factors in the prison environment that would cause the...... middle of article ......theseTaylor , D.L., & Palacious, W.R. (2002). The subculture of prisoners in juvenile environments. In RL Gido and T. Allemen (Eds.), Turnstyle Justice: Issues in American Corrections (pp. 60-61; Tables 5.2, 5.3). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Jeff Jhonson. (http://www.justice.gov/ndic/pubs27/27612/estimate.htm)National Drug Intelligence CenterAttorney General's Report to Congress on the Growth of Violent Street Gangs in Suburban Areas, April 2008http:/ /books.google.com/books?id=ZVmEkugKxUsC&pg=PA356&lpg=PA356&dq=Juvenile+Inmate+subculture&source=bl&ots=55uQlg5FXk&sig=XL2Mqe1xh0psna8hxCk9lzN-LTk&hl=en&ei=vec0TJOkE8KB8gaYscDICw& sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CEQQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q = Juvenile%20Inmate%20subculture&f=falseRobert M. Regoli, John D. Hewitt, EB (2009) Exploring Criminal Justice: The Essentials.chap. 13 Jones & Bartlett Learning (pubs.)