Discourse Power and Justice

First Published in 1994. Discourse, Power and Justice is a distinctive and theoretically informed empirical study of the administration of the Scottish prison system. It is based on extensive research and combines theoretical innovation with detailed empirical evidence. The book is located at the confluence of two academic traditions and their associated literatures, socio-legal studies and the sociology of knowledge, which are combined to produce a novel theoretical framework. The authors focus on the activities of those who manage the prison system. They identify the most important social actors in the prison system, located both historically and comparatively, and examine their characteristic forms of discourse. A number of crucial areas of decision-making are analysed in depth, including decisions about the initial classification of prisoners, transfers between establishments and the allocation of prisoners to different forms of work. Another major focus is on the different forms and mechanisms of accountability, and the book concludes with an analysis of recent policy changes. Discourse, Power and Justice will be essential reading for both students and practitioners in sociology, social policy, criminology and law.

Michael Adler is Reader in Social Policy at the University of Edinburgh. Brian Longhurst is Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Salford.