According to Malcolm Feeley and Jonathan Simon, who originated the concept of "new penology," it is a combination of policies that focus on the effective control of selected risk groups and efficient system management. This trend replaces the traditional objectives of rehabilitation or the punishment of individual offenders. The author concludes that although the "new penology" framed by Simon and Feeley provides stimulating insights, it is theoretically incomplete as well as loosely based in both historical and empirical data. These failings restrict its use to that of only a hypothesis or, at best, a warning for what penology may become. This critique applies not only to the specific concept of "new penology," but also to any broad conceptualization of a correctional paradigm that ignores the dynamic and unpredictable nature of criminal justice organizations. This article considers the adequacy of this concept as an interpretation of the values and practices of contemporary penal systems. It makes the case that under the concept of the "new penology," correctional managers will become robotic bureaucrats entrapped in the "iron cage" of an inflexible, rigid system of criminal justice. Notes, references