Depressive Symptomatology Among Women with Incarcerated Partners

• In Event: Health Criminology Panel: Social-Ecological Consequences of Criminal Legal System Involvement for Health

Abstract

Women with incarcerated partners are vulnerable to worsened or suboptimal mental health. Still, research has only begun to assess the correlates of women’s mental health during this tumultuous period. This study uses hybrid models, or random effects models that allow for distinct within-person and between-person effects, to analyze depressive symptomatology across three waves of survey data over 18 months among women whose partners were prison incarcerated. At the aggregate level, depressive symptomatology was found to decline across the duration of their partners’ incarcerations. Poor emotional health, not having medical insurance, struggling to afford medical care, and having learning difficulties were each associated with increased depressive symptomatology, while greater self-efficacy was associated with reduced depressive symptomatology. These findings are supported by the stress process and stress proliferation frameworks. Further, Black women reported slightly more depressive symptomatology, compared to their White counterparts. Overall, the findings have important implications for theory and policy at the intersection of vicarious incarceration and public health, given the common occurrence of having a loved one incarcerated– particularly an intimate partner– among U.S. women.

Author

• Katherine Durante, University of Utah