Omschrijving
This book challenges the centrality of the prison in our understanding of punishment, inviting us to see, hear, imagine, analyse and restrain 'mass supervision'. Though rooted in social theory and social research, its innovative approach complements more conventional academic writing with photography, song-writing and storytelling.
"an impassioned, informative and important work that delivers deep insights into the character of mass supervision" - Punishment and Society
“Brings to life the deep harms of supervision and how we might reconfigure it to create more justice for individuals and our communities” - Dr Michelle S. Phelps, University of Minnesota, USA
“Remarkable and ground-breaking…this singular work will challenge your understanding of punishment as well as your views about the limitations of academic work” - Professor Shadd Maruna, Queen’s University Belfast, UK
“Deserves to be widely read by scholars, students and policy makers” - Dr Gwen Robinson, University of Sheffield, UK
“An immensely readable account that is compassionate, empathetic, and humane – yet sharply observed and deeply critical” - Professor David Garland, New York University, USA
Beginning with the terms probation and parole, McNeill explores the diverse set of sanctions or measure imposed by criminal courts that involve some form of supervision in the community, whether instead of a custodial sentence as in certain forms of suspended or conditional sentences, as a community-based sentence in its own right (like probation in some jurisdiction), or as part of a sentence that begins with imprisonment but extends beyond it as in parole. He looks at the scale and social distribution of such mass supervision, the processes by which it has been legitimated, and how it is experienced by those subject to it.
Fergus McNeill is Professor of Criminology & Social Work at the University of Glasgow where he works in Sociology and in the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research. His research explores institutions, cultures and practices of punishment, and alternatives to punishment, particularly in the community. Before becoming an academic, he worked in drug rehabilitation and as a criminal justice social worker.