| Title: | Prison climate as method and experience : insights from a system-wide study in Slovenia |
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| Authors: | ID Mihelj Plesničar, Mojca (Author)
ID Bertok, Eva (Author)
ID Bezlaj, Alina (Author)
ID Hawlina, Hana (Author)
ID Lipovac, Dean (Author)
ID Tadič, Darja (Author) |
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| Files: |  URL - Source URL, visit https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.1515/zfrs-2026-3001/pdf
 PDF - Presentation file, download (365,85 KB)
MD5: FB51B04C95775BC761C69E653E626B73
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| Language: | English |
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| Typology: | 1.01 - Original Scientific Article |
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| Organization: |  IK - Institute of Criminology at Ljubljana Faculty of Law
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| Abstract: | This paper examines how prison climate can be measured in a small, interconnected, and increasingly strained prison system. Slovenia offers a rare longitudinal foundation: for over four decades, its prisons have been assessed with an adapted Moos social-climate scale. Yet changing populations, rising operational pressures, and the conceptual limits of Moos necessitated a methodological transition. We document the introduction of the MQPL+ framework, combined with SQL and a final administration of the Moos questionnaire, and we analyse the practical, organisational, and emotional realities of conducting system-wide mixed-method research across fourteen prisons. The study required substantial linguistic and cultural adaptation of MQPL+/SQL, flexible implementation under overcrowding and staff shortages, and a multi-layered qualitative design involving focus groups, interviews, and structured ethnographic observation. These elements enabled us to situate climate scores within their institutional context and to interpret them in light of leadership practices, population turnover, and broader system-level strain. Rather than presenting climate as a set of isolated perceptions, the paper demonstrates how measurement itself is embedded in organisational conditions and relational dynamics. By offering a transparent account of adapting and applying MQPL+ in a unique penal context, the paper contributes to debates on longitudinal climate research and provides insights for jurisdictions seeking to build relationally informed approaches to understanding the quality of prison life. |
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| Keywords: | prisons, prison climate, prison research, ethnographic research, qualitative research, comparative research |
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| Publication status: | Published |
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| Publication version: | Version of Record |
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| Publication date: | 27.05.2026 |
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| Year of publishing: | 2026 |
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| Number of pages: | str. [1-32] |
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| Numbering: | Vol. 46, iss. 1 |
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| PID: | 20.500.12556/DiRROS-29977  |
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| UDC: | 343 |
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| ISSN on article: | 2366-0392 |
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| DOI: | 10.1515/zfrs-2026-3001 |
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| COBISS.SI-ID: | 281152003 |
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| Note: | Avtorji: Mojca Plesničar, Eva Bertok, Alina Bezlaj, Hana Hawlina, Dean Lipovac, Darja Tadič;
Nasl. z nasl. zaslona;
Opis vira z dne 10. 6. 2026;
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| Publication date in DiRROS: | 10.06.2026 |
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| Views: | 124 |
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| Downloads: | 103 |
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