Caged Emotions

Ben Laws is Research Associate at the University of Cambridge, UK. Ben’s research has focused on the emotional dimensions of prison life, which was based at the Institute of Criminology’s Prisons Research Centre. He has professional experience working in a range of mental health settings across the UK and US, mainly supporting those with autistic spectrum conditions (ASCs) and a range of other complex psychiatric, behavioural and developmental disorders.

• Introduction.- Chapter 1 – Emotions before prison.- Chapter 2 – Implosions: Suppressing, bottling, trapping emotions.- Chapter 3 – Explosions: anger, rage, and violence.- Chapter 4 – Havens of calm: joy, peace, serenity.- Chapter 5 – The Case for Solitude.- Chapter 6 – When all the options are bad.- Chapter 7 – Emotions and Prison Sociology.