“No One Cared About My Mental Health:” Implications for Serving Traumatized Clients Under Community Supervision

• In Event: Navigating Mental Health, Trauma, and Identity in Community Supervision

Abstract

This research presents important considerations for the implementation of evidence-based gender- and trauma-responsive service models in community correctional contexts. In the past decade, the Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC) has prioritized implementation of evidence-based supervision models including gender-responsive supervision of women. Among other facets, gender-responsive supervision is tailored to women’s gender- and trauma-specific strengths and needs. This secondary analysis examines the experiences of 80 men and women in 10 Michigan counties who reported problems dealing with trauma during felony probation/parole supervision. Qualitative measures inquired about influences on participants’ decisions to disclose and seek help for trauma in the supervision context. Inductive and deductive coding revealed punitive and coercive features of the criminal legal system and the agent-client relationship that functioned as facilitators and barriers of disclosure to pursue support for trauma, including features that undermined the implementation of gender-responsive and trauma-informed supervision. Matrix coding was conducted to explore differences by gendered and racialized groups, indicating additional inconsistencies and opportunities to enhance service implementation and improve client outcomes. These findings provide important implications for policy to improve the implementation of community-based and correctional mental health intervention for diverse individuals impacted by trauma.

Author

• Kayla Hoskins, Yale University