2-085 - Children’s Visits with Incarcerated Parents: Implications for Intervention and Policy

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

The U.S. incarcerates more people than any country in the world (Pew Charitable Trust, 2008). Having an incarcerated parent has become one of the most significant public health problems for U.S. children, more common than autism, maltreatment, or juvenile diabetes. Each year, nearly 1.8 million U.S. children have a parent in state or federal prison and millions of additional children have a parent in jail. Children of incarcerated parents are at risk for developing negative outcomes, including internalizing and externalizing problems, academic difficulties, substance abuse, and criminal activity. Although parent-child contact is important for children’s well-being during parental incarceration (Poehlmann et al., 2010), few studies have examined the quality of visits and how variations in visiting may impact children’s experiences. Further, little empirical information is available about the benefits and barriers of different types of visiting (e.g., video visits, visits through Plexiglas, extended visits) for children and other family members, although such information is key for developing policies and procedures in correctional facilities. The studies presented in this symposium focus on children’s contact with jailed and imprisoned parents, including visits across different modalities. Each paper considers children’s experiences with visits, and how these experiences may differ by age and setting. Each study incorporates a different aspect of parent-child contact, including ratings of children and adolescent’s behaviors during visits, examination of predictors and outcomes associated with contact, and interviews with mothers’ and caregivers’ about their experiences with visits. Findings will be discussed regarding implications for intervention and correctional policies impacting families.

Sub Unit

• Family Context & Processes

Chair

• Rebecca J Shlafer, University of Minnesota

Discussant

• Alison Leslie Miller, University of Michigan School of Public Health

Individual Presentations

• Young Children of Jailed Parents: Emotions and Behaviors During Jail Visits and at Home - Presenting Author: Julie A Poehlmann-Tynan, University of Wisconsin; Hilary Runion, University of Wisconsin, Madison; Lindsay Adelman Weymouth, University of Wisconsin, Madison; Cynthia F Burnson, University of Wisconsin-Madison

• Adapting an Observation Checklist for use with Older Children and Adolescents of Jailed Parents - Presenting Author: Rebecca J Shlafer, University of Minnesota; Lauren A Hindt, University of Minnesota; Laurel Davis, University of Minnesota

• Extended Visiting for Incarcerated Mothers and their Children: Mothers’ and Caregivers’ Perspectives of Program Participation - Presenting Author: Erin Casey, University of Minnesota; Megan Duininck, University of Minnestoa; Rebecca J Shlafer, University of Minnesota