First survey on prison life in Chile: A social work call for prison reform

Based on survey data from a first nationwide assessment (n = 2093), we analyze the situation of Chilean prisons from an anti-oppressive, social work perspective. Our main findings reveal that many inmates experienced mistreatment from guards and/or from fellow prisoners, had limited access to in-prison programs, and reported poor infrastructure conditions. Inmates also identified priorities for improving prisons. Finally, we created an ‘oppression index’ and linked it to accessing in-prison programs, discovering that those with lower scores (less oppressed) tended to participate more frequently. Finally, we suggest some changes to the prison system and to the role of social work within it.