Inmate Classification as a Transaction

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Abstract
A problem with classification in prisons is that of disjunctures between recommendations based on classification data and the process whereby inmate assignments are made. This problem is aggravated by crowding, which limits differential assignment to extreme cases, such as inmates who have trouble surviving. Forging classification-assignment links presupposes communication among staff who successively deal with each inmate; classification recommendations must also be program-relevant and flexibly updated to take adjustment data into account. Nonclassification staff and inmates must have input into classification decisions. If possible, this input should be collaborative. Information exchange among staff runs into a concern with "confidentiality." Where classifiers protect confidentiality, they risk having recommendations ignored or circumvented. They also run this risk if they view classification as an autonomous process or function.

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