Open AccessPrison drug treatment in Denmark: A historical outline and an analysis of the political debate
Author(s) -
Torsten Kolind,
Vibeke Asmussen Frank,
Helle Vibeke Dahl,
Mie Birk Haller
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
nordisk alkohol- and narkotikatidskrift
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1458-6126
pISSN - 1455-0725
DOI - 10.2478/v10199-012-0046-3
Subject(s) - popularity , prison , politics , field (mathematics) , order (exchange) , criminology , sociology , political science , law , mathematics , finance , pure mathematics , economics
Aims The article outlines the historical development of prison drug treatment (PDT) in Denmark in order to understand the present situation where PDT is viewed as a natural benign practice. We also identify the different rationales within the political debate on PDT since its rapid expansion in 2000.Data Historical and policy documents, grey literature, interviews with key informants in the field.Results Four historical periods are identified, from a period when drug treatment was unwelcome in prisons to a re-emergence of the rehabilitation ideal over the last 15 years, when PDT appears unquestioned and its popularity has exploded. Five dissimilar and at times conflicting rationales have been present in the political debate legitimising this policy shift.Conclusion Part of the popularity of PDT stems from the fact that it has been used in political debates in order to justify a range of different and even conflicting objectives. With changing penal discourse, PDT may again become unwanted in prison settings.