Originally published in 1987, the purpose of Stress, Crowding, and Blood Pressure in Prison was to present, in a single location, the rationale, background, methods, principal results, analyses, interpretations, and conclusions of the authors’ studies at Massachusetts correctional institutions. Employing a longitudinal method for studying 568 inmates, the authors drew on psychological, social and health sciences assessments to identify the effects of housing mode, prison employment, leisure activities, disciplinary actions, and personal and sociodemographic characteristics to identify what was particularly stressful for inmates. A parallel study of prison staff and a specific series of conclusions and recommendations concludes the book.

In this report on one of the first continuing care departments in the country, Dr. Harold Willard describes how he set up and directed a program in Thayer Hospital, Waterville, Maine, to provide the personnel and services necessary for improved care of patients with chronic illnesses. The community hospital, he maintains, must be the center for developing methods for health maintenance and care of the chronically ill. Two chapters by Dr. Stanislav Kasl provide a theoretical background for continuing care and discuss the importance of information from the behavioral sciences in the development and operation of continuing care programs.