The factor and conceptual structure of the ‘measuring the quality of prison life’ (MQPL) in Croatian prisons

Abstract

Measuring the Quality of Prison Life’ (MQPL) is a widely used 126-item scale designed at the Prison Research Centre, Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge. The scale measures 21 dimensions of prison life, which could be classified into five broad categories: 1) harmony dimensions ; 2) professionalism dimensions ; 3) security dimensions ; 4) conditions and family contact dimensions ; and 5) well-being and development dimensions (Lieblieng, Hulley & Crewe, 2011). This paper aims to assess the structure of the MQPL when applied to Croatian prisons. Four hundred and ninety-three prisoners from 11 Croatian prisons filled in the MQPL. The results demonstrated that virtually all of the 21 original dimensions were reliable in the Croatian sample, providing a good conceptual fit of the scale (i.e. 16 out of the 21 dimensions had Cronbach’s alpha higher than 0.70). The factor structure of the scale differed somewhat from the original scale dimensions, but some factors nevertheless made conceptual sense. It is concluded that the conceptual structure of the MQPL is retained in the sample of Croatian prisoners and that the current translation of the original MQPL scale could be used for future prison research in Croatia