Expected outcomes of sport practice for inmates: A comparison of perceptions of inmates and staff

Abstract

In our society there is a version of sports that is “invisible”. It is not competitive, it generates no new records and provides no victories. It consists of the unrecognized sporting experiences of certain social minorities. One of these minorities is the prison population. Some research has examined the effects that the practice of sports can have in prisons. This article analyzes these effects based on the results of a qualitative study carried out in Andalusia in Spain. It focuses on the role of sports in the social rehabilitation of the prison population, emphasizing its potential in generating positive attitudes and behaviors that are helpful in re-integration. It also reveals that the role sports has in social rehabilitation is only effective if sports programs in prisons have sound pedagogical practices behind them.