Exploring the social climate in a UK therapeutic community prison: The influence of anti-social personality traits and suicidal ideation

Abstract

Social climate refers to how an individual experiences and perceives their environment. Within a therapeutic community (TC) prison, social climate is pertinent in supporting residents’ therapy and the therapeutic environment. This study sought to explore the relationship between social climate, assessed using the Essen Climate Evaluation Schema (EssenCES), and anti-social personality traits, suicidal ideation and suicide potential as measured using the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI). Data from a total of 167 adult male residents within a UK TC prison was included in the analysis. Correlational analysis revealed that anti-social personality traits were not significantly correlated with social climate. Suicidal ideation was also not significantly correlated to social climate. This may be due to the unique setting in which this research was conducted: a TC wherein a therapeutic culture is imperative, which may influence these factors’ effect on social climate. Anti-social personality traits were found to have a significant negative correlation with positive impression management. The results are limited in generalisability; however, this is the first exploration of the impact of anti-social personality traits and suicidal ideation on social climate within a TC. The implications and further limitations are discussed, with directions for future research outlined.