DRAWING ON A 15-MONTH PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION STUDY OF RACE AND RACE RELATIONS IN AN UNNAMED MAXIMUM-SECURITY PRISON, THE AUTHOR EXPANDS THE 'IMPORTATION' MODEL. THIS MODEL VIEWS THE PRISONER SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AS HAVING ITS ORIGINS AND CHIEF SUPPORTS IN GROUPS OUTSIDE THE PRISON, AND AS ARISING WITHIN THE PRISON THROUGH THE INTERACTION OF PEOPLE FROM SIMILAR BACKGROUNDS IN THE FACE OF COMMON PROBLEMS. CONSISTENT WITH THAT MODEL, THE AUTHOR DEMONSTRATES THE CRUCIAL IMPORTANCE OF PREPRISON EXPERIENCES (IN THIS CASE, RACIAL IDENTITY AND SOCIALIZATION) IN INFLUENCING ADAPTATIONS TO INCARCERATION. HE ADDS TO THE MODEL BY FOCUSING ON A NEGLECTED AREA -- THE SOCIAL INTERACTION OF RACIAL GROUPS WITHIN THE PRISON -- AND CONCLUDES THAT RACIAL DIFFERENCES INFLUENCE THE WAYS IN WHICH PRISONERS ADAPT TO IMPRISONMENT, PLACE BLACKS AND WHITES IN DIRECT COMPETITION, AND REINFORCE AND INTENSIFY RACIAL MISTRUST. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED).