Prisoners' families and offender management: Mobilizing social capital

Abstract

Interest in prisoners' families has grown considerably in recent years as the link between family support and reduced recidivism is increasingly recognized. This article explores the potential role of prisoners' families in reducing re-offending by reviewing the research literature to assess the contribution that family ties can make to effective resettlement and desistance from crime. Like other commentators, such as Farrall (2004) and Wolff and Draine (2004), the authors draw on the concept of `social capital' to provide key insights into the importance of family relationships for encouraging desistance. Potential ways to mobilize this social capital are considered and the article concludes with reflections on the likelihood of such measures being deployed by offender managers in the current penal context, and assesses whether the shift to offender management is likely to boost recognition of prisoners' family relationships.

‘It was just like we were a family again’: play as a means to maintain family ties for children visiting an imprisoned parent

“…While this small-scale evaluation was unable to measure long-term outcomes as a result of the play visits service, research has consistently shown that prisoners' families, especially children, represent a rich source of social capital for offenders and play a critical role in individuals desisting from crime and reintegrating successfully back into the community (Ditchfield, 1994;Holt & Miller, 1972;Mills & Codd, 2008;Niven & Stewart, 2005). For example families and children provide 'bonding' ties for prisoners through social and practical support but also 'bridging' ties as we know that many opportunities for employment for offenders after imprisonment arise from informal networks and through family friends (Mills, 2005).…”

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“…Parenting programs can include a revision of the inmate's own parenting and contact with their families. Prisoners also learn more about child development and how to relate to their own children in an age-appropriate way [24].…”

Hoping Against Hope: The Prison-to-Community Transition Experience of Men With Co-Occurring Severe Mental Illness and Substance Use Disorder

“…They asserted that "securing employment, resolving conflict with family members, maintaining sobriety, joining a community organisation … are all indicators of successful attachment to the institutions of civil society", potentially leading to reduced offending (p. 107). Later work built on these ideas and the attention began to shift in prison-to-community transition research to social, economic and support domains (Baldry et al, 2006;Graffam et al, 2005), to health as the central focus (Binswanger et al, 2011;Kinner, 2006;Kinner, Burford et al, 2013;Levy, 2005), to the relevance of social capital (Mills & Codd, 2008;Taylor, 2013;Wolff & Draine, 2004), and to the interaction between the individual and the environment (Farrall & Bowling, 1999;Farrall, Sharpe, Hunter, & Calverley, 2011).…”

“…Social capital is an emerging concept in both criminology and mental health that has growing relevance to understanding the transition experience (Mills & Codd, 2008;Taylor, 2013;Wolff & Draine, 2004). Social capital refers to the resources or "assets" available to the individual as a result of their social networks (Wolff & Draine, 2004).…”

“…Accordingly, social capital can take the form of social networks in prison with other released prisoners that can potentially facilitate criminal activity. In contrast, positive relationships can increase the "stock" of social capital, thereby promoting a sense of belonging and usefulness and foster independence and enhance functioning in the community (Mills, 2008).…”