A study of convicted prisoners: Crime and it's correlates

Human beings are born free. Freedom is God's greatest gift to men and women, the crowning glory of all creation. But many have lost their freedom by their criminal behavior. In an effort to determine various factors associated with crime among incarcerated prisoners, this study was conducted in a high security prison in India. Five hundred convicts (480 males and 20 females) of central jail Amritsar were surveyed with the help of proforma enquiring variables related to crime. Two-third (66%) of the sample falls within the range of 21 – 40 years of age. Their mean stay in the prison was 4.67 years. Maximum number of prisoners (56.6%) committed crime alone and only 8.4% of the prisoners committed crime in group of 4 and more. Maximum numbers of prisoners (60.8%) were convicted of murder (including murder associated with dacoity) and maximum numbers of prisoners (62%) were given life imprisonment. Only 10 (2%) prisoners had history of previous imprisonment. Forty seven (9.4%) prisoners used alcohol at the time of committing crime. Family history of crime was found in 26.2% of the prisoners.