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Updated: May 24, 2026

The Resident-intruder Paradigm: A Standardized Test for Aggression, Violence and Social Stress
Published on: July 4, 2013
Heterosexual romantic relationships, interpersonal needs, and quality of life in prison
Rodrigo J Carcedo1, Daniel Perlman, Félix López
1Departamento de Psicología Evolutiva y de la Educación, Universidad de Salamanca, E.U. de Magisterio de Zamora, "Campus Viriato", Avda. Cardenal Cisneros, 24, 49022 Salamanca, Spain. rcarcedo@usal.es
Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to investigate the moderating effect of having vs. not having a and quality of life. In-person interviews were conducted with 55 male and 64 female inmates from the Topas Penitentiary (Spain). Higher levels of social loneliness and lower levels of sexual satisfaction were associated with lower levels of quality of life. In addition, the interaction between sexual satisfaction and romantic partner status was significant. Higher levels of sexual satisfaction were associated with higher levels of quality of life only for the group without a partner. These findings support a "bad is stronger than good" principle and indicate the detrimental aspects that can be associated with not having a satisfactory sexual life while incarcerated.
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