Effect of Moral Disengagement in Media on Perception of Prison Reform

Resumen

The United States prison system, with over 1.2 million incarcerated individuals, faces a crisis of high recidivism and widespread correctional abuse. This review discusses how punishment-oriented prison policies and rhetoric create a dehumanizing environment and contribute to patterns of correctional officer abuse. Using Bandura’s moral disengagement theory, we analyze how media representations normalize systemic prison abuses and shape public perception. Our findings indicate that attitudes in favor of a punitive prison system are a significant obstacle to passing public policies aimed at making prisons more rehabilitative, stressing the importance of new solutions to reduce moral disengagement and its harmful effects in media reporting for safer prisons.

Áreas y palabras clave

Cómo citar (APA 7)

Feng, R., & Jiang, H. (2025). Effect of Moral Disengagement in Media on Perception of Prison Reform. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/gy4nr_v1