International exchanges between American and Scandinavian correctional professionals lie at the very heart of this intervention. A group of correctional officers and leaders from PA spent an extended period of time in Norway, Sweden and Denmark in the summer of 2019, where they visited several correctional facilities and got an opportunity to work alongside their Scandinavian peers. Following the unexpected delay to the project caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic, the group from PA returned to Sweden for a shorter, immersive experience in 2022. Their Scandinavian peers have also visited them at SCI Chester on several occasions.

Before, during and after these exchanges the research team collect both quantitative and qualitative data based on observations, interviews, focus groups, surveys and audio diaries to capture the first-hand experiences of the people involved. For instance, what do the officers and leaders from PA perceive as the most notable differences between Scandinavian corrections and American corrections? Which aspects of the Scandinavian environment – be it physical, practical, cultural and/or social – do they identify as viable “penal transplants”, and which aspects of the Scandinavian environment do they deem irrelevant or unsuited for the PA context? How do the PA team assess the prison climate of the Scandinavian institutions they spend time at, and how do they conceptualize the roles and responsibilities of COs in the various systems?