Horticultural therapy program for mental health of prisoners: Case report

Abstract

Background The restricted environment in prison negatively affects psychological health of prisoners, which in turn affects the rehabilitation of the prisoners. Previous studies have shown that horticultural activities were effective in improving psychological health of prisoners. The objectives were to develop a horticultural therapy (HT) program and to determine the association of 12 sessions with participants’ psychological health using case analysis. Methods Five cases who were imprisoned at K correctional institution in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea participated in this study. They were diagnosed as a potential risk group of psychological health. The prisoners participated in a HT program once a week (12 weeks, 90 min per session) between April and June 2018 at K correctional institution. The program consisted of cultivation-centered horticultural activities. At the completion of the HT program, depression (Beck Depression Inventory), anger (State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory), self-esteem (Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale), and life satisfaction (Satisfaction with Life Scale) were evaluated. Positive changes were found through observations of interviews, workbooks, and emotional change checklists that were recorded in each session. Results We observed positive changes in the prisoners’ health conditions measured before and after participating in the HT program. The prisoners who participated in the HT program showed decreased depression (–2.6), and increased self-esteem (+1.2) and life satisfaction (+4.0). Conclusions The prisoner rehabilitation HT program was associated with improvements in the participants’ psychological health. Future efforts will be required to investigate the effects of an HT program with a larger sample size to perform statistical analysis for providing convincing evidence.

The benefits of nature-based therapy for the individual and the environment: an integrative review

“…Furthermore, engagement in nature-based therapies resulted in psychological benefits, such as enhanced self-concept, self-esteem, positive identity, confidence, emotional stability, motivation, self-reflection, and a sense of achievement and responsibility for the participants (Christie et al , 2016; Kusumawaty and Yunike, 2020; Lee et al , 2021; Masel et al , 2018; Oh et al , 2020; Phelps et al , 2015; Sahlin et al , 2012; Seifert, 2014; Warber et al , 2015; Corazon et al , 2011). Other improvements reported within cohorts include decreases in negative feelings and dysfunctional thinking patterns, increases in positive feelings and mood, the attainment of a general sense of happiness and joy and positive changes in behaviour towards self and others (Christie et al , 2016; Lee et al , 2021; Lee et al , 2014; Lim et al , 2020; Masel et al , 2018; Oh et al , 2020; Phelps et al , 2015; Sahlin et al , 2012; Sidenius et al , 2020; Wang et al , 2019; Warber et al , 2015). Participants referred to experiencing feelings of empowerment, transcendence, hope, trust, courage, the will to live, rejuvenation and mindfulness (Christie et al , 2016; Lim et al , 2020; Oh et al , 2020; Phelps et al , 2015; Sahlin et al , 2012; Warber et al , 2015).…”

“…Tolerant and permissive environments, the flexibility of level of engagement with nature-based therapy and continuous admissions of new participants to the programme facilitated participation (Phelps et al , 2015; Sahlin et al , 2012). Conversely, a prison setting restricted engagement in nature-based therapy (Lee et al , 2021). Whether forest walks were guided or unguided did not affect nature immersion and associated benefits (Lim et al , 2020).…”

Therapeutic Horticulture as a Therapeutic Intervention in Patients Receiving Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) Treatment for Major Depressive Disorder

“…Our study adds to the literature on the role of TH in depression treatment by expanding to a severely affected inpatient population with MDD. Although earlier small group studies addressing a potential role for TH in depression treatment showed a positive trend towards improvement in overall clinical symptoms [34][35], a clear and significant effect of TH on clinical depression was not evident until structured studies addressing specific groups, such as geriatric patients and those with cognitive impairments, were conducted [36][37][38][39].…”

The Importance of Social Support during Imprisonment: A Case of Malaysian Drug-Abuse Prisoners

“…Thus, social support is a full mediator between the relationship of Prison Climate and Life Satisfaction. Lee et al, 2021;MacDonald, 2018). Because of those issues, the prison climate is not related to fulfilling drug-abuse prisoners' life satisfaction.…”

“…In order to cope with the circumstances, drug-abuse prisoners' life satisfaction seems to be an essential aspect of accomplishing the government aspiration, as they are part of Malaysian citizens. Nevertheless, low life satisfaction among prisoners derived from various issues, including ineffective treatment programs (Lee et al, 2021), inequality controlling communicable disease (Fazel & Baillargeon, 2011), drug-use issues in prison (Øiestad et al, 2019), high management cost (Bahagian Pengurusan Banduan IPPM, 2019), and lack of prison staff (Bahagian Sumber Manusia IPPM, 2020). Likewise, the problems arose as drug-abuse prisoners live isolated in custody and are particularly vulnerable to outside individuals (Baharudin et al, 2020b).…”