national prisoners. The fact that they were being visited gave them the feeling that they were not left on their own, it made them feel emotionally and spiritually supported and they felt that they were treated correctly because ‘official’ visitors were ‘keeping an eye’ on them. Information about rules and legal proceedings by consular staff and advice from visiting volunteers had a positive effect on them being aware about the rules and how things work in prison. Consular assistance enabled them to stay connected with the outside world while the work of visitors to let their relatives now about any problems was greatly appreciated. They also indicated that thanks to conversations with a chaplain they knew more about what they wanted in life and assistance from the Prison Service helped them to prepare for resettlement. In sum, Dutch prisoners are not only very satisfied with the different types of consular assistance they receive but it makes a difference to how they experience their incarceration and, more importantly, it addresses their needs. Conclusion Providing consular assistance to nationals in foreign detention can make a difference. The fact that in addition to consular staff, volunteers and chaplains 20. 56 visit Dutch nationals in over 50 countries means that prison authorities accept that other people than consular staff carry out visits and provide assistance. This means that in practice a broad interpretation is given to Article 36 (c) of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, which states that consular staff has the right to visit their nationals in foreign prisons and to provide assistance. Further it means that it is possible to provide different types of assistance which can be applied according to the needs. In interviews it became clear that prisoners were positively surprised by the fact that visitors from the Dutch Probation Service and chaplains from Epafras carried out visits and provided assistance on a voluntary basis. The fact that there are apparently people who, without any personal benefit, make an effort to visit them and show personal interest, made them feel very good because it made them feel human (again) and worthwhile. This phenomenon is called in sociology the ‘Pygmalion effect’ or ‘Belief effect’.20 The greater the expectation placed upon people, in this case a volunteer who shows personal interest and believes in the prisoner, the better they feel and perform. To what extent consular assistance and the involvement of volunteers leads to a crime-free life after release has never been studied but it might be worthwhile to do this in the future. Ben Rovers, ‘Ze deugen nergens voor’: Het Belief effect in justitiële jeugdinterventies. Lector talk, 9 November 2007. Prison Service Journal Issue 205