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Incarcerated Mothers, Children of
In recent years, the rate of incarceration in prisons and jails in the United States has been rapidly escalating. This trend has affected men and women in equally dramatic ways. However, the increasing incarceration rate for women is of particular concern, because these women are often the only caregivers of their children. Although no specific agency or system is charged with collecting data about incarcerated mothers and their children, conservative estimates indicate that 65% of female inmates have children (Mumola, 2000) and that at least 6% of women entering prison or jail are pregnant (Beck & Karberg, 2001).
As a result, it is estimated that approximately 200,000 children in this country currently have incarcerated mothers, while many more have experienced or will experience this situation at some point during their childhoods (Seymour, 1998). Certain minorities are affected more than others. Indeed, 2% of all minor children in the United States and about 7% of all African American children had at least one parent in state or federal prison in 1999 (Travis & Waul, 2004).
Developmental Correlates of Maternal Incarceration
Due to the scarcity of research in the field, very little is known about the ability of incarcerated mothers to function as parents and about the developmental outcomes that their children might experience (Gabel & Johnston, 1995). Sometimes, imprisonment can even represent a source of relief from difficulties associated with the removed parent, such as financial strain, abuse, or neglect. Yet, in most cases, researchers assume that the consequences of the incarceration of a mother are negative and potentially traumatic for their children, especially when the mother is the primary caregiver prior to incarceration. Among the most commonly cited effects are strains of economic deprivation; inappropriate separation anxieties and developmental delays or regressions; feelings of abandonment, loneliness, shame, guilt, sadness, anger, and resentment; eating and sleeping disorders; disruptive behaviors at home or at school; and diminished academic performances.
There are developmental differences in children's reactions to maternal incarceration. Infants, for example, are at risk of experiencing attachment difficulties, especially if they are subjected to multiple placements with multiple caregivers during the separation period. Children and adolescents might develop fears of being stigmatized by peers, teachers, and society in general, unless they see incarceration as a direct result of social prejudice against the minority or group that they identify with (Gabel & Johnston, 1995). Adolescents may develop a negative perception of the legal system and take part in illicit activities themselves (Travis & Waul, 2004).
Multiple Risk Factors
As in other types of separation (e.g., divorce), it is difficult to disentangle the effects of incarceration per se from the many other potential risk factors that children of incarcerated mothers may be exposed to, such as mother's history of illicit substance abuse and low socioeconomic status (SES). The variables that need to be taken into consideration include, but are not limited to, the age, gender, and temperament of the child; the relationships among the mother, the child, and other family members prior to the mother's incarceration; the kind of criminal offense committed by the mother; the duration of imprisonment; the type of living arrangements before, during, and after the incarceration period; the type and frequency of visits and other contacts among the child, other family members, and the incarcerated mother; and the family's ethnicity, cultural background, and socioeconomic status.
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- Adolescent Development
- Abstinence in Adolescence
- Adolescence and Thriving
- Adolescence, Current Trends and Research About
- Adolescent Females, Physical Activity
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- Foundations
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- Cancer Patients, Adolescent Consent to Research
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- Culture and Health
- Diabetes
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- Obesity, Pediatric
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- Psychotropic Medications
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- Sensory Impairment, Aging
- Vision Impairment, Late Life Adjustment and Rehabilitation
- Visual Impairment Across the Life Span
- Youth Development as a Public Idea
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- Historical Influences
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- American Psychological Association, Division 7 (Developmental Psychology)
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- Overton, Willis F., Philosophical Foundations of Developmental Science
- Pediatric Psychology
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- Philosophy of Science and Applied Developmental Science
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- Positive Youth Development, a Developmental Systems View
- Problem Behavior Theory
- Psychoanalysis in Adults, Theory and Technique
- Recapitulation
- Sport Psychology
- Stage Theories of Human Development
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- Television, Children's Processing of
- Universities
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- University of Michigan
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- Yale University, Bush Center in Child Development and Social Policy
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