Removing the Peripheral Blinders: Collateral Consequences of Parental Incarceration on Children

• In Event: Poster Session

Abstract

Studies of crime in the United States are primarily conducted around inmates and their environment in the adult world before and after incarceration, however, very minimal attention is given to the children of those who have been, or currently are, incarcerated. The Bureau of Justice Statistics has estimated that about 810,000 prisoners of the 1.5 million currently incarcerated are parents of minors, children less than eighteen years of age. While there is no reliable research evidence to support the stereotypical child with incarcerated parents having a higher chance of incarceration later in life, there is an abundance of factors that emerge from parental incarceration, leading to greater hardships and lesser chances of success as adults. According to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, these factors include but are not limited to: financial instability, instability in family relationships and structure, school behavior and performance problems, and shame placed on the child. When paternal support is removed, it tends to be nearly impossible for children to thrive. The aim is to analyze studies that both prove and disprove ideas of hardships made present to children with incarcerated parents. Results will be shown in order to be more accurately prove the thesis.

Author

• Katelyn Nicole Melahn, Cabrini College