The Impact of Transfers Between Prisons on Inmate Misconduct Testing Importation, Deprivation, and Transfer Theory Models

The purpose of this study is to propose and test a new theory of prisoner misconduct. Research has focused on influences of misconduct that originate from the community (importation) or that originate from the prison environment itself (deprivation). We formulate a new theory of misconduct, transfer theory. Transfer theory posits that influences of misconduct can also originate from a prior institution, following a transfer between prisons. The study is based on a sample of 5,926 state inmates transferred between prisons between 2008 and 2012. Support was found for transfer theory, predicting higher levels of misconduct for inmates transferred from larger institutions with lower custody levels.