Children's contact with their incarcerated parents: Research findings and recommendations.

Abstract

Approximately 1.7 million children have parents who are incarcerated in prison in the United States, and possibly millions of additional children have a parent incarcerated in jail. Many affected children experience increased risk for developing behavior problems, academic failure, and substance abuse. For a growing number of children, incarcerated parents, caregivers, and professionals, parent– child contact during the imprisonment period is a key issue. In this article, we present a conceptual model to provide a framework within which to interpret findings about parent– child contact when parents are incarcerated. We then summarize recent research examining parent–child contact in context. On the basis of the research reviewed, we present initial recommendations for children’s contact with incarcerated parents and also suggest areas for future intervention and research with this vulnerable population.

Children’s experiences of contact with imprisoned parents: A comparison between four European countries

“…Poehlmann et al, 2010), child-friendly visiting environments were more effective at protecting children's emotional wellbeing and existing positive parent-child relationships.…”

“…In a comprehensive literature review by Poehlmann et al (2010), just half of the studies revealed a positive association between prison visiting, attachment security 2 and positive emotional outcomes for the child (e.g. self-esteem).…”

Associations Among Mother–Child Contact, Parenting Stress, and Mother and Child Adjustment Related to Incarceration

“…Such contact may occur through visits, phone calls, or letters. Poehlmann, Dallaire, Loper, and Shear ( 2010 ) identifi ed 36 studies conducted after 1998 on incarcerated parent-child contact; of these, nine studies reported on incarcerated maternal outcomes (seven studies found positive and two studies found negative maternal effects) and nine studies reported on child outcomes (four studies found positive, two studies found negative, and three studies found both positive and negative effects). The most common positive outcome examined for incarcerated mothers was improved parent adjustment, such as less maternal "distress," fewer depressive symptoms, more empathy, and less parenting "stress".…”

“…Notably, all of the studies included in the Poehlmann et al ( 2010 ) review included self-report measures of stress. As an initial step towards broadening the knowledge base on stress and incarcerated mothers, in the study reported here, we integrated the neurophysiological stress marker cortisol into a battery of self-report measures of maternal psychosocial functioning.…”

Your True Freedom

“…They tend to exhibit both internalizing (e.g., depression, withdrawal) and externalizing (e.g., ADHD, stealing, fighting) behaviors (Dallaire, 2007;Fritsch & Burkhead, 1981;Murray & Farrington, 2008;Myers, Smarsh, Amlund-Hagen, & Kennon, 1999;Raimon, Lee, & Gentry, 2009;Turney, 2014), and are more likely to have poor academic performance due to a number of school-re-lated problems including disruptive behavior, suspensions from school, and increased truancy (e.g., Murray & Farrington, 2005;Phillips & Harm, 1996;Raimon et al, 2009;Trice & Brewster, 2004). Also, when their parents are arrested, many children behave in even more emotionally and behaviorally disordered ways, especially when their new caregiving situations are unstable (e.g., Nesmith & Ruhland, 2008;Phillips & Harm, 1997;Poehlmann, 2005a;Dallaire, Loper, Poehlmann & Shear, 2010). The instability of their new caregiving situation is a likely outcome since mothers in prison or jail often have difficult pre-incarceration histories including sexual, physical, and substance abuse, mental illness, medical problems, and homelessness (Glaze & Mauschak, 2008;Mumola & Karberg, 2006).…”