The Power of Storytelling: The Experiences of Incarcerated Women Sharing Their Stories

Abstract

Women are the fastest growing prison population in the United States. Women who are incarcerated are characterized by significant mental health needs and intense societal stigma. Despite such vulnerabilities, little is known about their experiences or the pathways that lead them toward recovery and rehabilitation. This qualitative research explores the lived experiences of incarcerated women sharing their stories with high school students and their teachers as part of a community outreach project entitled "Stories of Change." Six women were interviewed about what it was like to participate in the project. The data were coded and analyzed using phenomenological techniques, and the results were interpreted through a social constructionist framework. Five themes were revealed through an analysis of the interviews: (a) making a contribution, (b) connecting with others, (c) difficulty of telling their story, (d) identifying personal growth, and (e) moving forward. Storytelling is a powerful experience with lasting effects on the teller. This research explores the phenomenon of storytelling within a context of incarceration and stigma. These findings point toward the importance of providing programming to women within the criminal justice system that allows for meaningful interaction with normative individuals and opportunities for storytelling.

What Anansi Did for Us: Storytelling’s Value in Equitably Exploring Public Health

“…Additionally, storytelling as the primary modality was found in communicable disease research in public health and medical anthropology (Frank et al, 2015;Gilliam et al, 2012;Kleinman & Benson, 2006;Le et al, 2017;Mohammadhosseini et al, 2016;Willis et al, 2014). Finally, the literature showed that primarily public health researchers and medical anthropologists implemented storytelling in their studies, with a few identified in criminology and agriculture (Bove & Tryon, 2018).…”

‘Maybe It Is Only in Prison That I Could Change Like This’ The Course of Severe Mental Illnesses During Imprisonment – A Qualitative 3-Year Follow-Up Study From Chile

“…A study with male participants described high levels of stress and negative impact of imprisonment on preexisting mental illness as main mental health challenges (Oliffe et al, 2018) whereas other qualitative findings suggest long periods of isolation and negative relationships between staff and prisoners to be associated with poor mental health (Nurse et al, 2003). The participation in qualitative interviews itself can be experienced as beneficial by imprisoned study participants, which might be due to similar positive effects as from storytelling within a context of incarceration (Rivlin et al, 2011;Bove and Tryon, 2018). The results of prison research may be applied in programs to relieve the burden of mental health symptoms and to reduce criminal recidivism.…”

Negotiating the Maximum-Security Offender Identity: Experiences From Incarcerated Women

“…Disqualification of incarcerated women’s voices is often achieved through denying them opportunities to share their experiences and distorting their opinions. Authors (Bove & Tryon, 2018; Dastile, 2013; Sandoval & Baumgartner, 2017) make a case for uncovering counterstories to the dominant narratives and discourses about incarcerated women. Such uncovering of women offenders’ stories needs to be done through allowing them an opportunity to craft their stories, as they are experts in their own right in constructing their own life histories (Dastile, 2013).…”

“…This account of women classified as maximum-security offenders is often characterised by incomplete stories with distortions and negative labelling. Very few studies (Bove & Tryon, 2018; Fili, 2013; Kruttschnitt & Carbone-Lopez, 2006; Schram et al, 2004; Silverman, 2001) have examined how women construct their incarceration identities. Dissel (1996) also indicated that maximum-security offenders are often not included in rehabilitation processes and tend to be treated in a routine and inflexible manner due to concerns about security risks.…”

“…In this article, I intend to contribute to the growing literature that acknowledges the agency of incarcerated women in discourses about them (Artz et al, 2012;Bove & Tryon, 2018;Dastile, 2013Dastile, , 2017Kruttschnitt & Carbone-Lopez, 2006;Sandoval & Baumgartner, 2017) with the aim of countering negative labelling and deficit theorising. I aim to create a balanced understanding of their experiences as they enact their identities in the correctional environment.…”