AN ABUNDANCE OF RESEARCH HAS EVOLVED TO CHALLENGE THE THEORY THAT PERSONAL TRAITS ARE THE SOLE SOURCE OF BEHAVIOR. THE EMPHASIS ON THE SOCIAL SETTING AS A SOURCE OF BEHAVIOR VARIANCES HAS PRODUCED SOCIAL ECOLOGY AS A RELATIVELY NEW FIELD OF STUDY. A SOCIAL ECOLOGICAL APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF BEHAVIOR REQUIRES THAT BEHAVIOR BE STUDIED IN RELATION TO A DETAILED ANALYSIS OF THE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH THE BEHAVIOR OCCURS. FOR CORRECTIONAL ENVIRONMENTS, THE CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS ENVIRONMENT SCALE (CIES) IS THE INSTRUMENT USED FOR A SOCIAL ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT OF PROGRAMS, INCLUDING COMMUNITY CORRECTIONAL CENTERS. THE CIES SYSTEMATICALLY MEASURES THE PERCEIVED SOCIAL CLIMATE OF THE ENVIRONMENT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE RESIDENT AS WELL AS THE STAFF. NINE SUBSCALES ARE EVENLY DIVIDED INTO A THREEFOLD CLASSIFICATION. THE INVOLVEMENT, SUPPORT, AND EXPRESSIVENESS SUBSCALES ARE CONSIDERED RELATIONSHIP DIMENSIONS. AUTONOMY, PRACTICAL ORIENTATION, AND PERSONAL PROBLEM ORIENTATION COMPRISE THE TREATMENT PROGRAM DIMENSIONS. THE FINAL THREE SUBSCALES, ORDER AND ORGANIZATION, CLARITY, AND STAFF CONTROL, ARE SYSTEM MAINTENANCE DIMENSIONS. THE INSTRUMENT PROVIDES A METHOD FOR DESCRIBING CORRECTIONAL SETTINGS, DETERMINING AREAS OF INTERVENTION, COMPARING AND CONTRASTING CORRECTIONAL ORIENTATIONS, DIFFERENTIATING BETWEEN VARIOUS PROGRAMS, AND INVESTIGATING DISCREPANCIES BETWEEN THE DESIRED AND ACTUAL CORRECTIONAL ENVIRONMENTS. AN EXAMPLE OF THE USE OF THE CIES IS PRESENTED FOR A RESTITUTION SHELTER. TABULAR DATA AND REFERENCES ARE PROVIDED. (RCB)