Second-Generation Prisoners Adjustment Patterns for Inmates With a History of Parental Incarceration

The authors investigated whether prisoners who had a parent in prison, “second-generation prisoners,” had poorer rates of adjustment compared to those inmates who did not report a history of parental incarceration. Among a sample of 459 men and women in prison, approximately half reported having had...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inCriminal justice and behavior Vol. 38; no. 8; pp. 761 - 778
Main Authors Novero, Caitlin M., Booker Loper, Ann, Warren, Janet I.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.08.2011
SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
Subjects
Adjustment
Anger
Imprisonment
Parents & parenting
Prisoners
parental incarceration
childhood trauma
misconduct
prison adjustment
anger
importation model
violence
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:The authors investigated whether prisoners who had a parent in prison, “second-generation prisoners,” had poorer rates of adjustment compared to those inmates who did not report a history of parental incarceration. Among a sample of 459 men and women in prison, approximately half reported having had a parent in prison or jail. There was considerable self-reported childhood adversity within the entire sample, with relatively higher levels reported by the second-generation prisoner group. Second-generation prisoners self-reported more anger and prison violence and demonstrated a greater presence of institutional rule breaking in comparison to first-generation prisoners. Results were maintained after statistical control for the high rates of adversities in childhood. Post hoc analysis revealed differences on adjustment variables between first-generation prisoners and individuals with a mother incarcerated or with both parents incarcerated, suggesting the pronounced impact of maternal incarceration on long-term well-being. Results indicate that the negative effects of parental incarceration are evident within the prison community and have a significant relationship to inmates’ adjustment while incarcerated.
ISSN:0093-8548
1552-3594
DOI:10.1177/0093854811406637