ABSTRACT
Abuse behind prison walls is a significant social problem. Both males and females are victims of overt and covert abuse in domestic and international correctional facilities. The goal of a country's criminal justice system will determine its forms of punishment and their appropriateness, duration, and severity. Women are at higher risk for cardiovascular disease and by proxy, neglecting the symptoms or refusing to treat them impacts more females then males. Young women are at higher risk of being physically or sexually assaulted than young males. Social construction is critical to the understanding of gender-specificity as well as to the policy recommendations that are presented as a means of addressing the status of incarcerated women. A focus on feminist criminology allowed for an understanding of the gender-specific risk factors related to female criminality that would be well served through gender-specific programming.
