Psychological wellbeing, distress and coping in Australian Indigenous and multicultural prisoners: a mixed methods analysis

Rose, Arran; Trounson, Justin S.; Skues, Jason; Daffern, Michael; Shepherd, Stephane M.; Pfeifer, Jeffrey E.; Ogloff, James R. P.

doi:10.1080/13218719.2019.1642259

Cited by 10 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 58 publications

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“…For example, in a cohort of 530 adult male prisoners, Rose et al (2019) identified significantly higher rates of psychological distress and PTSD symptoms and marginally higher rates of other mental illness symptoms (including symptoms of depression and anxiety) compared to participants in the current study. These differ-ences may be attributed, at least in part, to the self-selection of prisoners: The Rose et al (2019) study recruited participants for one-off surveys, whereas the current study recruited participants to complete surveys as part of a 3-week intervention program. In the present study, participants may have presented with less severe psychopathology as they volunteered to be involved in a well-being program, resulting, perhaps, in a sample of more well-adjusted and agentic participants.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 44%

“…Individuals in custody have also been found to have higher levels of psychological distress if they have been imprisoned on more than one occasion (AIHW, 2015). The similar levels of psychological distress across cultural groups may also be based on the prison environment itself and the challenge of being incarcerated, which can be highly stressful for prisoners (Cooper & Berwick, 2001; Rose et al., 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Kenny and Lennings (2007) found no significant differences in psychological distress levels between CALD, Indigenous Australian, and ESB young people in custody. Rose and colleagues (2019) reported that whereas 63% of prisoners reported high levels of psychological distress, Indigenous Australian prisoners reported significantly higher psychological distress levels than both CALD and ESB prisoners and significantly higher depressive and anxiety‐related symptoms than CALD prisoners.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mental Health, Psychological Distress, and Coping in Australian Cross‐Cultural Prison Populations

Rose

Trounson

Louise

et al. 2020

Journal of Traumatic Stress

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The rates of mental illness are significantly higher in prison populations compared to the general community; however, little research has examined the rates of mental illness for cross‐cultural groups of prisoners in Australia. This omission is concerning given the increasingly diverse nature of the Australian prison population. To address this gap in knowledge, the present study aimed to identify rates of key mental health factors and associated psychological processes in a cohort of 191 men from culturally and linguistically diverse, Indigenous Australian and English‐speaking backgrounds who were incarcerated at a maximum‐security prison in Victoria, Australia. We also explored differences in both psychological distress levels and predictors of psychological distress. Although no significant mental health differences were identified cross‐culturally, the results revealed that several mental health factors predicted psychological distress for all prisoners, F(11, 147) = 33.23, p < .001, R2 = .71. The experiences of anxiety and sleep disturbance–related symptoms, β = .34; depressive symptoms, β = .19; posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, β = .25; and the use of psychological processes, such as avoidance coping, β = .16; and engagement in cognitive fusion, β = .15, all predicted psychological distress. The use of positive thinking as a coping strategy was found to predict a reduced level of psychological distress for prisoners, β = −.13. The findings indicated that the mental health profiles of cross‐cultural groups of prisoners are similar in nature, suggesting that justice involvement may be a more useful predictor than cultural differences concerning psychological health.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 44%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mental Health, Psychological Distress, and Coping in Australian Cross‐Cultural Prison Populations

Rose

Trounson

Louise

et al. 2020

Journal of Traumatic Stress

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“…Higher proportions of the ever-incarcerated group reported high to very high levels of distress and a life-time mental health diagnosis (35%). Prior research has pointed to the elevated distress levels of Indigenous prisoners [34,37,55], and Australian prisoners in general [56,57]. The proportion of never-incarcerated individuals with a mental illness (22.7%) is in line with Australian male general population estimates (approx.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 70%

Closing the (incarceration) gap: assessing the socio-economic and clinical indicators of indigenous males by lifetime incarceration status

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Background: Approximately 1 in 5 to 1 in 6 Indigenous Australian males are currently imprisoned or have previously been imprisoned. Recent work has also pointed to a widening socioeconomic gap within the Indigenous population. Given the myriad social, wellbeing and environmental risk factors associated with justice-involvement, it is conceivable that incarceration may contribute to the increasing disparities found within the Indigenous population. This study aimed to explore the presence and extent of an 'incarceration gap' within the Indigenous population and to uncover which social factors characterise the disparity. Methods: The study utilised data from the 2014-5 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey (NATSISS). A number of socioeconomic , environmental and clinical factors were compared by lifetime incarceration status. Chi-square tests were used to examine the association between incarceration status and each of the comparison variables. Results: Disparities were observed within the Indigenous Australian population across a number of important health and socioeconomic markers by incarceration status-the most pronounced being for educational obtainmentyear 10 completion (Never incarcerated 73%, Ever incarcerated 50%), labour force participation (Never incarcerated 56%, Ever incarcerated 26%) and drug/alcohol problems (Never incarcerated 7%, Ever incarcerated 29%). Never-incarcerated Indigenous males yielded aggregate proportions across numerous variables that approximated or matched general Australian population estimates. Conclusions: There appears to be evidence for a substantial 'incarceration gap' within the Indigenous Australian population.

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“…Existing research points to similarities across mental health symptoms and coping mechanisms between CALD and Anglo-Australian prisoners 19 and in some cases, lower reported levels of mental disorder. 20 Some cross-cultural commonalities are expected given that the social determinants of mental disorder and justice involvement (i.e.…”

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confidence: 99%

The mental health of culturally and linguistically diverse offenders – what do we know?

Rose

Shepherd

Ogloff

2020

Australas Psychiatry

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Objective: A key challenge facing justice health service providers is addressing and treating the high rates of mental illness among offenders. It is well documented that rates of mental illness are substantially higher within prison populations compared to the general population. As such, the need to provide ongoing treatment to prisoners experiencing mental health issues is of fundamental importance. Prisoners experiencing mental health disorders are more likely to have poorer social outcomes on release, including a greater likelihood of recidivism and poorer health outcomes. The growing numbers of justice-involved individuals from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds signal the need for justice systems to adapt to the changing demographic. Conclusions: In this commentary, we argue that greater efforts to explore the nature and prevalence of mental illness among CALD groups in custody, where such concerns are often intertwined with additional complex personal, environmental and historical criminogenic risk factors, are desperately needed to improve system responses and reduce recidivism.

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Psychological wellbeing, distress and coping in Australian Indigenous and multicultural prisoners: a mixed methods analysis

Cited by 10 publications

References 58 publications

Mental Health, Psychological Distress, and Coping in Australian Cross‐Cultural Prison Populations

Mental Health, Psychological Distress, and Coping in Australian Cross‐Cultural Prison Populations

Closing the (incarceration) gap: assessing the socio-economic and clinical indicators of indigenous males by lifetime incarceration status

The mental health of culturally and linguistically diverse offenders – what do we know?

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