‘It's Knowing the Right Things to Say and Do’: Challenges and Opportunities for Trauma‐informed Practice in the Prison Context

Abstract

The relevance of trauma‐informed practice (TIP) across the workforce, especially in a trauma‐laden environment such as prison, has gained credence. Little is documented, however, on the practicalities of responding to trauma within custodial institutions where the potential for retraumatisation and the tension between care and control are complicating factors. This article explores the views of over 200 prison staff on the adoption of a trauma‐informed approach for young people in custody. It identifies a gap between vision and practice and, while acknowledging that prisons can become more ‘trauma‐aware’, disputes the notion that true TIP is possible within current custodial contexts.

Understanding Models of Support for People Facing Multiple Disadvantage: A Literature Review

“…Safe environments: trauma-informed approaches provide, as a minimum, an environment in which trauma is not exacerbated or becomes an impediment to engaging with services. Commonly cited key underlying principles that help to create and sustain such an environment include: trust; collaboration; choice; empowerment; and safety (Vaswani and Paul, 2019).…”

Contextualizing clinical social work practice with individuals, families, and groups in Northern British Columbia

“…Trauma-informed practice is a tool used by social workers to recognize the influence of trauma when they confront clients' substance use and addiction, mental illnesses, and unhealthy coping techniques (Bent-Goodley, 2019; Brown et al, 2013;Bruce et al, 2018;Carello & Butler, 2015;Knight, 2015;Knight, 2019;Levenson, 2017;Powers & Duys, 2020;Vaswani & Paul, 2019). Trauma-informed practice is not a single approach; instead, it combines the social worker's reflexivity, humility, and sensitivity to clients' experiences of trauma to create a therapeutic environment for healing (Bent-Goodley, 2019).…”

“…Research shows that trauma-informed practice needs to have four core principles (Bair-Merritt, 2015;Bent-Goodley, 2019;Levenson, 2017;Powers & Duys, 2020;Vaswani & Paul, 2019;Wilson et al, 2015). First, a trauma-informed practice should create safety for clients, fostering trustworthiness and transparency between social workers and clients.…”

“…Third trauma-informed practice should create space for empowerment, voice, and encouraging clients' choice. Fourth, it should be responsive to cultural, historical, and gender issues.These principles create an environment to validate clients' experiences and prevent retraumatization (Bent-Goodley, 2019;Knight, 2019;Vaswani & Paul, 2019).…”

“…The trauma-informed practice helps the clinician to minimize the occurrences of retraumatizing clients, which could happen for various reasons, such as when a social worker invalidates clients' traumatic experiences or when clients are exposed to triggering, traumatic memories (Bent-Goodley, 2019; Brown et al, 2013;Bruce et al, 2018;Levenson, 2017;Vaswani & Paul, 2019). Trauma-informed practice includes the practitioner's ability to see the client holistically, beyond being the victim of trauma (Bent-Goodley, 2019).…”