Therapy on a treadmill: The role of the prison psychotherapist.

Psychological therapy in prisons: Professionals’ perceptions

“…In 1979, Schlesinger criticised the provision of psychotherapy in prisons as being "manipulative, exploitative, and potentially harmful" (p. 307), yet these sentiments have shifted in recent years as psychological therapy is increasingly considered to be humane, fair, and decent (Huffman, 2006;Mills & Kendall, 2010). Nevertheless, Schlesinger's (1979) original concerns about the constraints of a prison environment remain. Prison environments have been labelled as being "anti-therapeutic" (Mills & Kendall, 2010), "therapeutically impoverished" (Fenner & Gussak, 2006), and "counter-therapeutic" (Fletcher, 2014).…”

“…Constraints such as these present several challenges for establishing confidentiality, anonymity, privacy, and a continuity of care vii . The concepts of confidentiality and a continuity of care are fundamental to ethical therapeutic practice (Bond & Mitchels, 2008), and they form, what Schlesinger (1979) believed to be, the "necessary conditions" for prison psychotherapy.…”

“…The idea of motivation has been critiqued for being an inadequate concept (Draycott, 2007). It is argued that motivation is not only extrinsic to the client in the CJS but also the requirement to be motivated could lead to service provision inequity (Day et al, 2007;Draycott, 2007;Jones, 2007;Schlesinger, 1979).…”

“…vii (Bertrand-Godfrey & Loewenthal, 2011;Boyd & Grant, 2005;Bradley, 2009;Corston, 2007;Durcan, 2008;Eidhin et al, 2002;Farrant, 2012;Fletcher, 2012;Ford, 2001;Hall, & Gabor, 2004;Harper & Franks, 2013;Huffman, 2006;Jones, 2007;Jones, 2012;Loewenthal, 2011;Mitchell & Latchford, 2010;Schlesinger, 1979;Smedley, 2010;Tite, 2013. ) viii The therapeutic relationship is open to interpretation dependent on the theoretical perspective used to understand it (Hewitt & Coffey, 2005).…”

Supervision Needs of Correctional Mental Health Counselors

“…Psychotherapy with the inmate population itself is quite difficult and often considered noneffective (Schlesinger, 1979). Therefore, unique approaches are needed for this population (Reid, Dorr, Walker, & Bonner, 1986).…”