Sport and Physical Recreation in Canadian Federal Prisons: an Exploratory Study of Carceral Physical Culture
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Sport and Physical Recreation in Canadian Federal Prisons: An Exploratory Study of Carceral Physical Culture by Mark David Norman A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Exercise Sciences University of Toronto © Copyright by Mark Norman (2015) Sport and Physical Recreation in Canadian Federal Prisons: An Exploratory Study of Carceral Physical Culture Mark Norman Doctor of Philosophy Department of Exercise Sciences University of Toronto 2015 Abstract Despite their prominence in correctional environments around the world, sport and physical activity are understudied areas of prison life, including in Canada. Furthermore, even less attention has been paid to how prison sport and physical recreation intersect with the many other physical practices in prisons that, this dissertation argues, together compose a carceral physical culture. This thesis addresses this gap through an exploratory study of the historical development and social significance of carceral physical culture in Canadian federal prisons. The thesis includes a detailed historical examination of the development of the Canadian corrections system and its impact on physical culture, using a variety of primary and secondary sources to develop this analysis. It also draws on important theoretical perspectives from the sociology of everyday life—particularly the theoretical work of Erving Goffman, Michel de Certeau, and Henri Lefebvre—to explore the micro-level significance of physical culture in prisons. This analysis engages with the complex social meanings of sport and physical activity in an environment of extreme deprivation—what Goffman (1961a) calls a total institution—and the ways these practices ii are implicated in social control and resistance. Delving deeply into the broad range of physical cultural practices with which prisoners engage, and situating these within the micro- and macro-level structures that contour the social world of prisons, not only provides insight into the social significance of sport and physical activity in an unusual social context—it also allows for interpretive analysis about the operation of power in total institutions, the social production of space in and through physical culture, and the complex ways in which powerful actors exercise social control and marginalized groups resist these impositions. iii Acknowledgments Deep thanks are owed to my committee members, who have had a profound impact on my academic journey and the production of this thesis. Thank you Dr. Peter Donnelly, Dr. Bruce Kidd, Dr. Mike Atkinson, and Dr. Phil Goodman for your support, insight, and collegiality throughout my PhD career. I am indebted to my participants for giving generously of their time and for sharing their experiences with me. As well, I thank the many non-participants who shared their professional expertise or connected me with potential participants. To my classmates and colleagues, thank you for your friendship and support over the years. You have made this journey easier and more pleasant, and I am extremely excited to see where your own lives and careers take you. I hope our paths cross many times in the future. Finally, my family has provided amazing love and support to me throughout my life. My academic career and this thesis would not have been possible without my parents, Ed and Susan, my siblings, Wendy and Peter, and their spouses, Chris and Melanie. A very special thanks is owed to my wife Melissa, who I met partway through my PhD and who has provided me with constant and unwavering love, support, and kindness throughout the highs and lows of this academic journey. I love you all and cannot thank you enough for everything you have done for me. iv Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGMENTS....................................................................................................................................... IV TABLE OF CONTENTS..........................................................................................................................................V CHAPTER 1: CANADA’S CORRECTIONAL SYSTEM AND CARCERAL PHYSICAL CULTURE .............1 THE CONTEXT: CORRECTIONS AND PRISONS IN CANADA .................................................................................................1 SPORT, PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, AND PHYSICAL CULTURE IN PRISONS ................................................................................3 Sport, Physical Activity, and Physical Culture.......................................................................................................... 4 Carceral Physical Culture.................................................................................................................................................. 7 CHAPTER OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................................................................. 12 CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ................................... 14 SPORT AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN PRISONS.................................................................................................................... 14 Rehabilitative, Therapeutic, and/or Mental Health Benefits..........................................................................16 Sport and/as Social Control in Prisons......................................................................................................................19 Constructing and Performing Prison Masculinity................................................................................................21 Sport and Physical Activity in Women’s Prisons ...................................................................................................22 Sport and Physical Activity for Juvenile Offenders and Delinquents............................................................23 Physical Recreation in Prison: A Canadian Perspective.....................................................................................25 UNDERSTANDING PRISONS: THEORIZING SOCIAL CONTROL AND PUNISHMENT....................................................... 27 Punishment and Prison ....................................................................................................................................................28 THE SOCIOLOGY OF EVERYDAY LIFE: AN INTERPRETIVE APPROACH.......................................................................... 32 Symbolic Interactionism..................................................................................................................................................33 The Contributions of Erving Goffman........................................................................................................................35 The Total Institution .........................................................................................................................................................37 Theoretical Approaches to Space, Tactics, and Subversion in Prisons........................................................40 CONCLUSION............................................................................................................................................................................ 45 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................................................ 46 METHODS................................................................................................................................................................................. 48 Interviews...............................................................................................................................................................................48 Informal Discussions .........................................................................................................................................................50 The Kingston Penitentiary Tours.................................................................................................................................51 Public Presentations..........................................................................................................................................................53 Historical Analysis: Institutional and Prisoner-Produced Texts....................................................................54 v THE BEST LAID PLANS: REFLECTIONS ON A FAILED RESEARCH PLAN IN AN OPAQUE CORRECTIONAL BUREAUCRACY ........................................................................................................................................................................ 57 Barriers to Prison Research: Negotiating Access and Developing Alternative Plans......................58 The Politics of Gaining Research Access to Prisons..............................................................................................62 Making Sense of CSC’s Decision ....................................................................................................................................63 RESEARCH ETHICS, RAPPORT, AND THE INTERVIEW PROCESS WITH “VULNERABLE” POPULATIONS .................. 68 Navigating Ethics in the Interview Process.............................................................................................................70 Ethics Protocols, Empathy, and Social Justice Research....................................................................................74