Prison is seen by most people as an inevitable part of the penal system, but there is a growing awareness that its effects on offenders are rarely beneficial and may be positively harmful. In Prisoners of Society, originally published in 1974, Martin Davies argued that there was still the need in society for a commitment, not to reform its deviant members, but to provide a compassionate service in those situations where it was most needed. He looks at the increasingly important role of the probation service in prisons and borstals, and discusses the likelihood of radical changes occurring within the system at the time.

Dr Davies focuses on the concepts of welfare, training, rehabilitation and after-care, and places them in the context of sentencing policy. He asks whether society is deluding itself in expecting imprisonment to be at the same time punishment and the springboard for personal reform. Using case examples, material from prisoners' autobiographies, official documents and a wide range of research papers, he presents a rounded view of a crucial aspect of the contemporary penal system, and compels the reader to face up to the question: What does society expect of its prisons and its prisoners?