The Causal Effect of Heat on Violence: Social Implications of Unmitigated Heat Among the Incarcerated

Mukherjee, Anita; Sanders, Nicholas J.

doi:10.3386/w28987

Cited by 16 publications

(11 citation statements)

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“…11,15,[37][38][39] This study expands on theory and empirical evidence showing a positive association between heat exposures and incidence of different forms of violence. Similar to our findings, Mukherjee et al 8 In response to extreme heat, prisons often implement strategies such as flagging people who are vulnerable and providing access to fans, ice, and cold showers. 7 However, these policies are typically intended to avert heat exhaustion or heat stroke and dehydration and have been less attuned to the psychological and behavioral effects of extreme heat.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…First, we categorized the daily maximum heat index into 6 bins (<30 °F, 30-39 °F, 40-49 °F, 50-59 °F, 70-79 °F, and ≥80 °F) based on the distribution of this variable. For modeling, the reference category was 60 to 69 °F . Second, we created a dichotomous indicator for any facility-day where the maximum heat index exceeded the 90th percentile of heat indices for all days in the observation period, based on guidance of prior studies’ definition of extreme heat …”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Extreme Heat and Suicide Watch Incidents Among Incarcerated Men

et al. 2023

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ImportanceExtreme heat poses a distinct risk to the 2.1 million incarcerated people in the United States, who have disparately high rates of behavioral health conditions. Suicide is a leading cause of death among people in prisons.ObjectiveTo examine associations of extreme heat, solitary confinement, and an indicator of suicidal behaviors among incarcerated men in a Deep South US prison system.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsThis longitudinal case series panel study included adult men in prisons in Louisiana, a state with one of the largest prison systems in the United States that has been engaged in litigation due to lack of air conditioning and extreme heat. The unit of analysis was prison facility-days. A facility-level data set was created by merging administrative data files, which included demographic characteristics, health classification, housing location and movement, disciplinary records, and involvement in suicide-watch incidents for all incarcerated men in Louisiana during the observation period. Individual-level variables were aggregated to facility-days to merge in daily maximum heat index data from the US Local Climatological Data, which were linked to the zip codes of prisons. The observation period was January 1, 2015, to December 31, 2017. Data set construction occurred from August 2020 to September 2022, and analysis was conducted from December 2022 to February 2023.ExposureThe focal exposure was extreme heat days. Daily maximum heat index data were categorized into 6 bins (&lt;30 °F, 30-39 °F, 40-49 °F, 50-59 °F, 70-79 °F, and ≥80 °F) and as an indicator for any facility-day where the maximum heat index exceeded the 90th percentile of heat indices for total days in observation period. Conditional fixed-effects negative binomial regression models were used to calculate incident rate ratios to test associations between extreme heat and suicide watch incidents, while controlling for covariates.Main Outcomes and MeasuresThe focal outcome was daily count of suicide watch incidents that were recorded in a carceral system database. Covariates included daily percentages of incarcerated persons at each prison with serious mental illness diagnosis, daily rate of solitary confinement, and total facility population.ResultsThe sample of 6 state-operated prisons provided 6576 facility-days for the analysis. Results suggest a dose-responsive association between extreme heat and daily counts of suicide-watch incidents; compared with days with temperatures between 60 and 69 °F, the rate of daily suicide incidents increased by 29% when the heat index reached the level of caution (ie, 80-89 °F) and by 36% when reaching extreme caution (90-103 °F) (80-89 °F: incidence rate ratio [IRR], 1.29; 95% CI, 1.17-1.43; P &lt; .001; 90-103 °F: IRR, 1.36; 95% CI, 1.15-1.61; P &lt; .001). Compared with other days, those with the extreme heat indicator were significantly associated with a 30% increase in the incident rate of daily suicide-watch incidents (IRR, 1.30; 95% CI, 1.18-1.45; P &lt; .001).Conclusions and RelevanceFindings suggest an association between extreme heat and an indicator of suicidality among an incarcerated sample, contribute to an emerging literature exploring linkages between climatological events and health outcomes in prisons, and may have implications for legal interventions and advocacy seeking to abate heat-induced morbidity and mortality in carceral contexts.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Extreme Heat and Suicide Watch Incidents Among Incarcerated Men

et al. 2023

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“…Extreme temperatures, as a result of climate change, pose a fundamental threat to economic development and human welfare, especially in developing countries. A growing body of literature has examined the impact of temperature on economic and health outcomes: agricultural TFP and output [ 1 , 2 , 3 ], industrial output and productivity [ 4 , 5 ], employment [ 6 , 7 , 8 ], high-stakes cognitive performance and decisions [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 ], human capital [ 13 , 14 ], violence [ 15 ], time allocation [ 16 ], and physical and psychological health [ 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 ]. These studies find that extreme temperatures not only bring economic and social costs, but also impair human health.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temperature and Migration Intention: Evidence from the Unified National Graduate Entrance Examination in China

Yan

Chen

et al. 2022

IJERPH

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This paper estimates the impact of destination cities’ temperature on the migration intentions of highly educated talents. Using a unique manually collected dataset of applicants for the Unified National Graduate Entrance Examination (UNGEE) of double first-class universities in China, we find that both hot (over 25 °C) and cold (below 5 °C) days in the previous 3 months before the registration date significantly decrease the number of applicants for the UNGEE of double first-class universities, relative to a moderate (20–25 °C) day. Heterogeneity analysis shows that such effects differ by destination universities’ quality and climate regions. We also find that destination cities’ income level can mitigate the negative effects of hot days and cold days on the number of applicants. These findings add to the existent literature by examining an understudied relationship between temperature and migration intention.

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“…Age and chronic health conditions are well-documented risk factors for heat impacts (CDC, 2017). Another recent study in Mississippi's un-temperature-controlled prisons found an increase in violent interactions on days when the outdoor heat index reached unsafe levels (Mukherjee and Sanders, 2021). The examples above demonstrate the state of complete reliance experienced by incarcerated populations; a complete reliance on the carceral built environment produced around them to provide any degree of protection from hazards in a physical environment that is increasingly unstable due to changing thermal atmospheric conditions (NASEM, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thermal (In)equity and incarceration: A necessary nexus for geographers

Colucci

Vecellio

Allen

2021

Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space

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Despite overall societal progress in reducing adverse impacts of heat and cold, incarcerated populations remain highly vulnerable to environmental stressors. Incarcerated populations experience a combination of risk factors related to their physical health and well-being that increase their thermal vulnerability: social isolation, disproportionate mental health issues, comorbidities, limited mobility, and a reliance on external factors to provide a safe, healthy environment. In carceral spaces, thermal exposure agitates these already complex situations, shaping a confluence of various economic, political, and ecological intersectionalities. This synthesis contextualizes the ongoing scholarship on climate change, thermal exposure, the built environment, and public policy, to examine thermal inequities experienced by incarcerated populations. In examining this context, we connect our work to carceral geographies, the geographies of violence, racial capitalism, and abolition ecologies. Ultimately, the review highlights how physical geographers may directly converse with critical geographers, promote equity and environmental justice, and work to reduce adverse impacts of extreme temperature events.

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The Causal Effect of Heat on Violence: Social Implications of Unmitigated Heat Among the Incarcerated

Cited by 16 publications

References 0 publications

Extreme Heat and Suicide Watch Incidents Among Incarcerated Men

Extreme Heat and Suicide Watch Incidents Among Incarcerated Men

Temperature and Migration Intention: Evidence from the Unified National Graduate Entrance Examination in China

Thermal (In)equity and incarceration: A necessary nexus for geographers

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