Problems with Criminal Incarceration in the United States

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ABSTRACT
The size of the United States correctional facilities population has heavily increased over the past years, an aspect that resulted in many questions on the massive numbers of individuals sent to custody year as an efficient way of reducing crime rates in the society. This paper seeks to review the problems resulting from incarceration in the United States of America.
On the other hand, the paper aims to determine if the rapid growth of the incarcerated population in prisons act as an approach to reduce the growing crime rates and if these factors have any impact on crime rates. In this case, the paper will incorporate both the single and multiple regression models in estimating the relationships between burglary rates, robbery rates, and incarceration rates including other variables that include the GDP per capital, correlation expenditures, and unemployment as a percentage of the state’s costs.
The data clearly opines that correctional expenses and unemployment have an impact on the growing crime rates than incarcerations. The study also establishes that contrary to the common beliefs of the lawmakers, incarceration rates result in higher crime rates. Consequently, the study draws a conclusion that the increase in incarceration rates is an aspect that reduces no crime and addressing this issue may be a positive aspect in the reduction of the offense.
* Introduction
According to sources, the U.S spends more of its resources on crime prison systems than any other state in the world. The lawmakers believe that incarcerations are necessary constructs that are required to reform the growing crime rates in a bid to reduce the levels of crime rates. Given this, it is essential to establish that the maintenance of the prisoner’s population that stands at 1.6 million individuals turns out to be expensive, costs that the American taxpayers incur in billions every year (DeFina 650). Figure 1 clearly indicates that the numbers of incarcerated people in the American prison system from 1920 to 2006. This clearly gives an indication of the expenditures that are incurred by the taxpayers in a bid to maintain the prison populations that are growing and how this has resulted in the questioning of the efficiency of prison incarcerations as an approach aimed at correcting the population’s behaviors in the U.S.
Figure 1.1: Numbers of Incarcerated Prisoners in the United States of America
This research study, therefore, investigates the factors that contribute to the growing crime rates than the incarceration rates with the aim of developing approaches targeting managing crimes. On the other hand, the paper seeks to establish the factors that contribute to the growing crime rates as detailed in reports alleging that robberies with violence respond to the increasing incarceration rates as compared to nonviolent offenses which include burglary where criminals fail to use force in threatening the criminals (DeFina 651). In this case, it is detailed that the growing incarceration rates have limitations in reducing crimes, and factors such as correlation expenditures and unemployment have an impact on the increasing crime rates.
* Literature Review
According to Johnson, the impact of incarcerations on crime rates within the American population remains high. In this author's study, the overall crime rates were reviewed for two decades, with data gathered from 50 states and provinces in the U.S. The author details that the survey modeled a design that related the current numbers of incarcerations within the criminal justice system with the amounts of crime that occur. The findings of the study detailed the impact of incarcerations and the approaches used in reducing the growing crime rates within the society declined (pp300). This apparently means that the increasing population of prisons is inefficient with the addition of prisoners in the reduction of crime rates. The study clearly details that this aspect is owed to the fact that many offenders are considered as first-time criminals. Given this, the first time offenders who have been incarcerated are likely to take consideration of the consequences of jail time in conducting the crime. This clearly determines the fact that the incarceration of unrelated individuals may influence their decisions in committing crimes during a given period.
On the other hand, Levitt attributes the growing sizes of prisoner population as an unforeseen impact on the swelling crime rates. In his study aimed at establishing the effects of crowding among the prison population, the reduction of prisoner population was considered as an important aspect in impacting the observed crime rates. The results of the study clearly revealed that the decrease of parole populations leads to an increase in crime rates in the U.S and that the social benefits of crime reduction in association with the maintenance of a single prisoner remain greater than the costs related to overcrowded prisons (pp.320). However, it is essential to consider that the study dwelled on instances where prison systems reduced their enrollments by ensuring that prisoners are released out on parole. Inmates who are out on parole are considered likely to more crimes than random individuals regarded as first-time offenders, an aspect that explains the problems faced in the incarceration of prisoners.
Conducting a review of the offense rates remains an essential aspect to consider since this creates a comprehension of the socioeconomic factors that influence the growing crime rates within a population. Another study by Pfaff revealed that there are several factors under the Federal and State controls that hugely impact crime. The study additionally noted that the most numbers of crimes and the higher incarceration rates have a significant impact on the reduction of types of crime within a given population (pp.50). The research also details that particular types of crimes have higher incarceration rates such as drug crimes, with the impact of these crimes considered a burden especially when the state offers its resources in counseling and addiction treatment centers to the offenders during their term in prison.
Ultimately, this literature clearly details some of the essential factors that influence the growing crime rates about the changes in average income per capital. The finding clearly states that during hard economic periods, people are likely to commit crimes. However, it is essential to consider that the conclusions of these studies differ in opinion in several ways. One aspect remains in the fact that the research studies involved only specific situations such as the identification of subjects by their parole status or instances where prisoners were repeat offenders then developing sampled populations based on these aspects (Shackford n.p). Given this, this study analyses the crime rates through the use of incarceration data on individuals within a given population. The model developed in this study has a larger variable as compared to the findings of other studies in establishing factors that impact the growing crime rates.
* Data
In developing a regression analysis, the incarceration rates in close to 50 states in 2010 was considered as an independent variable while the crime rates on robberies and burglaries by the state during this same year was used as the dependent variable. The incarceration rates, in this case, acts as the independent variable considering that the accuracy of the data presented remains robust and generated by a court of law for public records. The multiple regression model details that correlation expenditures, unemployment, and GDP per capita are a percentage of a state’s spending, with the numbers of police officers per 100,000 inhabitants as the additional repressors that need to be accounted for (Shackford n.p). The numbers of officers within a given state remains a fundamental factor in the enforcement of law and order within a particular state. The correlation expenditures, on the other hand, vary from state to state in consideration of the state’s policies. However, the amount of funds spent on these correlational facilities also plays a role in determining the crime rates growth in states.
Given this, data on the expenditures was collected from the US Justice Department. Data on the growing crime rates was obtained from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) database. Data on the incarceration rates were also obtained from the United States Bureau of Justice (Shackford n.p). The GDP per capita and the rates of unemployment within each and every state were achieved from the Department of Labor. Lastly, information on the correctional expenditures was obtained from the United States Bureau of Justice between the years 2002 to 2010. According to this information, the spending during an entire period was considered.
The sample population used for this model was found as larger than the random and adequate samples on crime data achieved. In this case, it is essential to note that none of these variables had a perfect linear relation. The correlations between these variables in the models are depicted in Figure 1.1 below, with the conditions justifying the Gauss-Markov approach on data collection in the construction of a robust regression model.
Figure 1.1: The correlations between regression’s in the model
* Results
Regression Model Results
Variable

Model I: Robbery Rates as an Independent Variable

Model II:
Burglary as an Independent Variable

Model III:
Robbery Rates as an Independent Variable

Model IV
Burglary rates as an Independent Variable.

Incarceration Rates

0.89402 (0.024*)

0.796792 (0.000*)

0.47568 (0.172)

0.5967167 (0.003*)

Correctional Expenditures

NA

NA

-3.459887 (.085**)

-4.8767850 (0.6876)

GDP Per Capita

...