THE CIES WAS ADMINISTERED TO A SAMPLE OF INMATES HOUSED AT EACH INSTITUTION. THE TEST SCALE CONSISTS OF 90 TRUE OR FALSE ITEMS WHICH SUMMARIZE INMATES' PERCEPTIONS ON 9 DIMENSIONS THAT REPRESENT A FACILITY'S SOCIAL CLIMATE. A TOTAL OF 900 INMATES FROM THE CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTIONS, 477, FROM COMMUNITY TREATMENT CENTERS, AND 83 FROM SPECIAL UNITS PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY. THESE 1,460 INMATES REPRESENTED 37 PERCENT OF THE TOTAL INCARCERATES IN OKLAHOMA'S PRISON SYSTEM. DATA REVEALED THAT THE CIES ADEQUATELY MET CRITERIA FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL SCALES. WITH FEW EXCEPTIONS, OKLAHOMA'S MALE INSTITUTIONS WERE FOUND TO BE BELOW THE NATIONAL NORMS ON ALL DIMENSIONS EXCEPT EXPRESSIVENESS AND STAFF CONTROL. THE PRIMARY EMPHASIS AT THE INSTITUTIONS WAS ON CONTROL OF THE INMATE POPULATION, WITH LITTLE EMPHASIS ON ASSISTING THE INMATES WITH PERSONAL PROBLEMS OR PREPARING THEM FOR RELEASE. FEW OUTLETS WERE AVAILABLE FOR EXPRESSION OF FEELINGS OTHER THAN HOSTILE OR VIOLENT BEHAVIOR. HOWEVER, SOCIAL CLIMATES OF THE COMMUNITY TREATMENT CENTERS HOUSING MALES WERE CLOSER TO, OR EXCEEDED, NATIONAL NORMS. FEMALE FACILITIES WERE ALSO BELOW NATIONAL NORMS, WITH THE EXCEPTIONS OF PRACTICAL ORIENTATION AT THE FEMALE COMMUNITY TREATMENT CENTERS AND STAFF CONTROL. THE OKLAHOMA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS SHOULD DEVELOP A GENERAL STATEMENT OF PURPOSE WHICH SPECIFIES THE DESIRED END PRODUCT OF INCARCERATION. MONTHLY REPORTING SYSTEMS SHOULD BE REFINED TO ASSIST IN THE EVALUATION AND MONITORING OF INCARCERATION. INMATE ADVISORY COUNCILS SHOULD BE CONSIDERED, AND CASELOAD MEETINGS TO INFORM INMATES OF RULE CHANGES SHOULD BE IMPLEMENTED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED). ABI LWM