Families Left Behind: The Hidden Costs of Incarceration and Reentry

• NCJ Number: 233267
• Author(s): Jeremy Travis; Elizabeth Cincotta McBride; Amy L. Solomon
• Date Published: June 2005
• Length: 12 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Annie E. Casey Foundation
• Sale Source: The Urban Institute
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Issue Overview
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Since little attention has been given to how communities, social service agencies, health care providers, and the criminal justice system can work collaboratively to better meet the needs of the families left behind when a parent is incarcerated, this policy brief focuses on these hidden costs of our criminal justice policies.

Abstract

When a parent is sent to prison, many dimensions of his/her family functioning undergo significant changes. The family structure, financial relationships, income levels, emotional support systems, and living arrangements many be affected. Intimate relationships are substantially burdened by incarceration, and the emotional development of children is adversely affected. Maintaining contact between an incarcerated person and his/her family during the incarceration period is difficult. Although many corrections departments recognize the value of communication between prisoners and their family members, correctional practices often impede the maintenance of family ties. Facilitating contact between inmates and their family members has been shown by research to reduce the strain of separation and increase the likelihood of successful reunification upon release. Reentry into the family and community upon release is a challenging process along several dimensions. Released offenders must find housing, employment, and health care. For a family that has struggled in an inmate's absence, many barriers make it difficult for family members to resume support roles when the prisoner returns home. Communities can have an active role in improving the outcomes of released inmates and their families. Community services can address needs for housing, substance abuse treatment, health care, employment, child care, counseling, and vocational training. More research is needed to document the hidden costs of criminal justice policies. At the same time, policymakers, practitioners, service providers, and community organizations must focus on the ripple effects of these policies and the opportunities for more systematic and coordinated efforts to reduce the harms so broadly experienced. 1 table, 3 figures, 32 notes, a list of additional readings and resource centers