Understanding the Adjustment of Incarcerated Young Offenders: A Canadian Example

Abstract

This article describes a short-term longitudinal study of the adjustment to custody of Canadian youth. It explores whether pre-existing and institutional vulnerabilities are independent predictors of custodial adjustment. Findings suggest that youth with many pre-existing vulnerabilities and high prison stress at entry into custody are more likely to experience initial adjustment difficulties. As youth spend more time in custody, their levels of pre-existing vulnerabilities remain important but perceived level of support and level of fear also emerge as important predictors of adjustment. Implications of the findings for research and practice are discussed.

The Importance of Institutional Culture to the Adjustment of Incarcerated Youth and Young Adults

“…Taken together, our studies on incarcerated youth (Cesaroni and Peterson-Badali 2005, 2010 indicate that young people's pre-existing vulnerabilities (e.g., family instability, child welfare involvement, educational difficulties, etc.) as well as institutional vulnerabilities (prison stresses, fear of victimization, and low social support) predict youths' adjustment, whether defined in terms of internalizing behaviours (e.g., depression, sadness, withdrawal, anxiety) or well being (i.e., whether or not the incarceration experience has been painful and whether youth feel lonely, isolated, tense, or stressed).…”

“…In addition, we found evidence for a non-additive model of adjustment in which the interaction of pre-existing vulnerabilities and institutional stressors contributed uniquely to youths' adjustment beyond the additive effect of these variables. Thus, youth who are already higher risk on entry to prison are more vulnerable to the negative impacts of the institutional environment than those with fewer pre-existing risks (Cesaroni and Peterson-Badali 2010).…”

“…Interestingly, prison stresses, which many inmates feel at entry into custody (e.g., missing freedom, family and friends, and certain activities), though important predictors of adjustment (Maitland and Sluder 1996), appear to be one aspect of doing time that some youth learn to manage (Cesaroni and Peterson-Badali, 2010). However, social support from within the institution and fear predict adjustment in a more complex fashion.…”

“…However, social support from within the institution and fear predict adjustment in a more complex fashion. For example, a young person's level of fear appears to vary over time, with current level of fear predicting adjustment (Cesaroni and Peterson-Badali 2010). This is likely due to the everchanging nature and make-up of a young person's peer group during incarceration along with the uncertainty this state of flux may engender.…”

Masculinity and Resistance in Adolescent Carceral Settings

“…The goal of the second study was two-fold: (a) to interview ''first timers '' and (b) to examine what predicted youths' adjustment in custody once they had settled into the daily routine of the institution (Cesaroni and Peterson-Badali 2009;Cesaroni and Peterson-Badali, 2010). It was a short-term longitudinal study of 100 males from Ontario, Canada who ranged in age from 12 to 17 years at the time of the interview.…”