1. San Francisco State University
Parental Incarceration
Chrissean Moss
CJ 680: Field Course in Criminal Justice
Professor Snipes
12/17/14
Word Count: 9735

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Introduction
Our nation's growing prison population has raised many alarming questions about how many of
those in prison are parents and how the collateral effects of incarceration has on their children. It is
clear that when a parent goes to prison, they never go alone. In other words, when a parent goes to
prison and lose out on the world so does their children. Children of today are our future, but are they
being nourished to become the children of the future. In fact, it is clear imprisonment disrupts the
nurturing relationships between many parents, in other words, mothers and their children. Every day is
a difficult time for children who have a parent or parents incarcerated. As a result of this children are
the ones who suffer more than anybody. Children can not defend themselves against the damages
inflicted by a system not sensitive to the nurturing relationship that a parent can provide. Innocent
children are seen as the forgotten generation due to the causalities of their parent's crime. There is an
estimated 250,000 youth who are tried, sentenced, and incarcerated every year across the United States.
Not only are there many children being incarcerated, but also because of parental incarceration it
correlates with higher school dropouts rates, lower academic achievement, and ultimately more
involvement with the criminal justice system as offenders themselves. Not to mention, children are
exposed to factors that have placed them at a higher risk for developmental behaviors and issues.
Parental incarceration affects children in the following ways mentally, physically, and emotionally.
Some may say, having a parent in prison does not effect the way a child grows up, however research
from this paper will prove otherwise. Due to the mass imprisonment of parents, incarceration has had a
phenomenal effect on children's identity. Being that they do not have the proper guidance and resources
children see themselves as less than. For a child to see themselves as less than we know there is a huge
problem that needs to be resolved.
Incarceration rates
Across America, we have an enormous prison problem. The growing number of children with an

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incarcerated parent represents one of the most shocking of our record prison population across the U.S.
There are more than one million individuals incarcerated in the U.S jails and prison who are parents.
According to the article, Children of Incarcerated Parents by Diane Reed and Edward L Reed stated,
“The are approximately 10 million children in the U.S. who have had one or both parents
incarcerated”(Reed,152). In addition, much of what we know about this issue comes from a series of
reports by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) on the incarceration rates of parents with children. In
fact, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics Report: Parents in Prison and Their Minor Children
by Lauren Glaze and Laura Maruschak stated, “An estimated 809,800 prisoners of the 1,518,535 held
in the nation's prisons at midyear 2007 were parents of minor children, or children under age 18”
(Glaze & Maruschak,1). However, not much statistics from the Bureau of Justice has been reported
since 2007, but the article has been revised in 2010. As a result of this, here is something that is more
recent, according to the “New York Initiative for Children of Incarcerated Parents a special report of the
Osborne Association has pointed out a few national statistics on children with incarcerated parents. The
Osborne Association writes, “More than 2.7 million children in the U.S. have an incarcerated parent
and approximately 10 million children have experienced parental incarceration at some point in their
lives”, It then goes into stating “One in 9 African American children (11.4%), 1 in 28 Hispanic children
(3.5%), and 1 in 57 white children (1.8%) in the United States have an incarcerated parent” and lastly,
“Nationally, there are more than 120,000 incarcerated mothers and 1.1 million incarcerated fathers who
are parents with minor children (ages 0-17) (Osborne Association). This high prison rate of parents who
are being incarcerated is steady growing rapidly. This leaves more and more children without a parent
to look after them. For the simple reason social and economic factors that individuals are exposed to
can lead them to break laws in our society in order live and provide for their children.
Social and Economic Factors
The key aspect discussed here is the social and economic factors that contribute to a child well

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-being. Growing up in poverty can damage the lives of children and hinder their social and economic
development. Parents support is considered to be one pathway through which socio-economic factors
influence children's competence. Socialization is an important process in a child's life. Children become
well functioning members of a particular group and take on certain values, behaviors, and beliefs. This
process starts from birth until adulthood, but however the early childhood is the most crucial period of
socialization. Some social factors that affect children is having to deal with the separation from their
parents. This separation can come from a parent being in jail or losing their kids to the system. In
addition to this, being brought up in an environment where you live with one parent and visiting the
other can impact a child emotionally. Having a child go from house to house can cause a lot of
problems on a child relationship with their parents. Not only are there social factors that contribute to a
child's well being, but also there economic factors as well. A child living with a parent who is
unemployed is an economic factor. This has a huge impact on the upbringing of a child. If a parent isn't
able to work than the parent may not be able to provide an adequate amount of food and basic necessity
to survive. This then leads to a family living in poverty or involving themselves in illegal activity
which causes a big strain on the family. A nuclear family consists of a mother, father, and their child.
The structure of a family and their personality characteristics of individual parents plays a huge role in
the differences in socialization. For instances, a mother and father with two children, believes that
spending time with each other is vital to developing strong family ties. This family hugs their children
everyday and the parents tell their children how important they're in life each and everyday. As a result
of this, their children feel accepted in this world. On the other hand, a mother who has two children
who she is raising by herself will not be able to build a strong family tie. At the end of a long workday,
the mother is exhausted from working two jobs to support her children. Instead of this mother giving
her daughters a little quality time when she comes home, the mother immediately has to start cooking
and cleaning. This mother is always to busy and too tired to spend time with her children. As a result of

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this, she rejects the needs of her children, which can lead her children to become hostile and are
aggressive towards others. They will not feel accepted or wanted in this world because they never
received the attention they needed from their mother. Furthermore, in the article, The Impact of
Economic Hardship on Black Families and Children: Psychological Distress, Parenting and
Socioemotional Development by Vonnie McLoyd states, “Its principal assumptions are that (a) poverty
and economic loss diminish the capacity for supportive, consistent, and involved parenting”, she then
states, “a major mediator of the link between economic hardship and parenting behavior is
psychological distress deriving from an excess of negative life events, undesirable chronic conditions,
and the absence and disruption of marital bonds” then she ends by saying, “economic loss and poverty
affect children indirectly through their impact on the parent's behavior toward the child and father-child
relations under conditions of economic hardship depend on the quality of relations between the mother
and father”(McLoyd, 312). These factors contribute to how the simple fact that social and economic
hardships can affect the way a family functions and that can end up hurting their children in the end.
Economic hardship such as poverty causes families to suffer mental and physical problems as well. In
addition to this, there are also other economic factors that contribute to this. Inner city crimes is
prompted by social and economic isolation. This is to say that because of the way inner city poor
neighborhoods are isolated from other areas that makes them more prone to involve themselves in
illegal activity and strive to provide for their children. Parental engagement in a child's life is one of the
biggest issues that can affect the way a child grows up.
Parental Engagement
Before we dig deep into how parental incarceration affects youth physically, mentally, and
emotionally; it is important we look into how parental engagement is important in a child's life.
Parental engagement refers to all activities that parents do to successful help their child succeed in life.
Parental engagement is very vital to a child's life. Parents are their child’s first teacher so therefore

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everything they witness from their parents is mimicked. Parent(s) must train and show their child the
importance of life and how to handle situation as they continue to grow. According to the survey's
conducted over a period of time, some community members and probation officers has made it clear
when asked “How does parental engagement play out in a child's life”, that parental engagement is
important in the way a child succeeds and functions. One person pointed out, “Parents who have time
to engage in their child's lives have a positive influence. A parent who has a relationship with their
children are more likely to be able to influence the activities they participate in and they know what
their children are doing” (Survey). Another person suggests, “Parents are a major factor in determining
whether children engage in delinquent acts or not. Parents have to be involved in a child's life, but
sometimes cannot do so because of other obligations such as work. When parents are unable to be with
their children outside of school hours, or place them in programs, children are more likely to be
involved with illegal actives”, this persons then goes into stating that, “Furthermore, parents need to set
an example of what is allowed and not. If a parent encourages illegal activities (whether passively by
just participating in the act around their children or by not reprimanding their children for inappropriate
activities) or by actively encouraging their children to participate in illegal activities, children are more
likely to be accepting of these activities and to engage in them” (survey). Parents are suppose to nurture
and mode their children into respectful people. Children need love, guidance, support, and engagement
of all sorts. If parents do not participate in the growth of their child, children tend to find trouble and
turn to the streets for love and guidances. Engagement plays a crucial role in a child's life in fact, it
defines their ego and self-esteem not to mention their sportsmanship, hobbies, and the way they handle
themselves in different situations throughout life. Can imagine how this can be affected if a child had
one parent or both of their parents incarcerated. Every child needs their parents to teach them right
from wrong.
Effects on Youth Cognitive Development

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After briefly discussing how parental engagement is vital in a child's life and how that contributes
to a child well-being, it is important to discuss how parental incarceration effects youths cognitive
development. Cognitive development refers to the ability to think, understand, problem solve, and
memorize. Most children with incarcerated parents live in poverty before, during, and after their
parents incarceration. Research has suggested that children with parents who are incarcerated may be
at-risk for academic difficulties and their levels of cognitive functioning are well below the national
norm due to having a parent incarcerated. Not only this, but the extent to which a child will be affected
by their parents incarceration depends on a few variables. Those variables include the age in which the
parent-child separation occurred, the length of separation, nature of parents crime, and health of the
overall family. All these factors has to do with the way a child can or will develop. For example, the
nature of a crime can affect the way a child develops. If a parent committed a horrible crime against
someone else or sold illegal drugs that can affect the way the child grows up in this world especially if
the child witnessed what their parents have done. As a result of this, a child with an incarcerated parent
will develop to see the world totally different from a child who hasn't been put through such a traumatic
experience growing up living in poverty and/or witnessing illegal activity. Also a child's cognitive
development can be affected by their parents relationship prior to incarceration and after incarceration.
For example, in the article, Beyond Absenteeism: Father Incarceration and Child Development by
Amanda Geller points out, “Incarceration may affect children by compromising their parents’
relationship. The economic strain created by incarceration may undermine the father’s traditional role
as a provider, straining parents’ relationships”(Geller, 51). This goes to show that not only can parents
relationships undermine the father's traditional role as the provider, but it also can hurt the way a child
sees relationships in general. So much so that, a child with a father incarcerated may lead a child to
grow up and date someone from that same environment. To get a better understanding of how children
with incarcerated parents have a major impact on their development, it is best we take a look at the

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report titled, Children of Incarcerated Parents by Charlene Simmons. Simmons provided us with a chart
by Dr. Denise Johnston, a director of the Center for Children of Incarcerated Parents at Pacific Oaks
College in Pasadena, that labels possibles developmental effects on children of parental crime, arrest,
and incarceration. The author acknowledges “during the developmental stage (0-2 years old) the
developmental characteristics these children face are total dependency, and their developmental tasks
include attachment and trust. She then express, that the influencing factors they face is parent-child
separation, and the effects these children face is impaired parent-child bonding”(Simmons, 7).
Simmons also mentions, during the early childhood stage (2-6 years old) the developmental
characteristics we see in children this age is increased perception and mobility, incomplete
individuation from parent, and their developmental tasks includes sense of autonomy, independence
and initiative”. Lastly, she explains how there are factors that can influence a child development and
they include “parent-child separation due to incarceration of their parents”. The effects this have on a
child this age is anxiety, developmental regression, acute traumatic stress and survivor guilt”(Simmons,
7). With this in mind, you can see how parental incarceration can effect youth's development and the
way they think and function. According to the surveys conducted, when asked “How does parental
incarceration affect children emotionally, behaviorally, and developmentally?”, some say it effects
youth development. One probation officers insisted that, “Its horrible because children don't understand
why their parents are in jail and a lot of them are afraid of the police. They think police are bad because
they took their parents away”(Survey). This here goes to show how having a parent being taking to jail
in front of the child can affect the way a child sees police officers.
Effects on youth Physically
Parental incarceration has a wide range of effects on youths, but in this particular paragraph we
will discuss how youth are effected physically by their parents being incarcerated. When a parent is
incarcerated, a child must enter a stage of instability and uncertainty. Children do not even began to

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know what they must cope with when their parent is incarcerated. Some children mainly older children
ages 12-18 years old may feel concerned about outcomes of their parents case. Most older children are
worried about their parents case because this will determine the time away from them and perhaps
younger siblings. On average a sentence for a father in a state prison is 12.5-13 years and for mothers it
is about 8 years. Therefore you can see why children have many physical problems due to their parent
incarceration. Children may also feel unsure and worried about how they would live without their
parents mainly their mother. And lastly, children between those ages are also concerned about their
future in this world. Youth with parents who are incarcerated often exhibit trauma from seeing their
parent or knowing they are incarcerated. For example, a youth with a parent or both parents in jail may
experience developmental delays. Instead of devoting his or her life to important age-appropriate things
such as playing, reading, and growing healthy, and their social development, these children have to
focus more on dealing with the absence of their parents and the difficulties that may pose on their
future. Children whose mothers and fathers are incarcerated often experience disruption and multiple
placements throughout their life. According to the article, Children with Parents in Prison: Child
Welfare Policy, Program, and Practice Issues by Cynthia Seymour explains that, “Approximately half
of children whose mothers are incarcerated live with grandparents, one-quarter live with their fathers,
and the remaining one-quarter are placed in out-of-home care or live with other relatives or friends in
informal placements. These children are often separated from their siblings and may experience erratic
shifts in caregivers”(Seymour, 473). This author also suggests, “Their new caregivers tend to have low
incomes and may lack the social supports and other resources necessary to meet the children's complex
needs”(Seymour, 473). In addition to this, in the article, Children of Incarcerated Parents: The Child's
Constitutional Right to the Family Relationship by Chesa Boudin stated, “When the father is
incarcerated, 88% of the children live with their mother, 12% live with grandparents, and 2% are sent
to a foster home or agency”(Boudin, 82). Considering this it can be concluded that the physical impact

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children face who have parents who are incarcerated leaves children at a lost. Often most times when
youth are not placed in any of these facilities, they're homeless on the streets or involving themselves in
illegal activity. Also parental incarceration may be a risk factor for child abuse and neglect according to
Seymour. (Seymour, 474). She states, “Prior to incarceration, a parent's criminal justice involvement
may be symptomatic of family problems or issues that prevent the parent from providing appropriate
care”(Seymour, 474). In addition to this, in the article, Parental Incarceration and Child Well-Being:
Implications for Urban Families by Amanda Geller, et al stated, “For example, low family income as a
result of incarceration can affect children directly if they live in unsafe neighborhoods, attend
ineffective schools, have poor diets, or receive little healthcare. Children who do not reside with the
formerly incarcerated parent (typically the father) may also be at risk if the parent loses his or her
ability to pay formal or informal child support”(Geller, 1187-88). It can be seen how children are
physically affected by there parents being incarcerated and without the proper care from their parents
they can miss out on a functioning and a well managed life. Due to the incarceration of their parents
and being low income that causes more problems for youth to physically be effected by. When a parent
is incarcerated children are left with years of isolation, deprivation, depression, and academic failure.
Furthermore, Simmons reveals that, “The children may suffer from multiple psychological problems
including trauma, anxiety, guilt, shame, and fear”. She then states, “Negative behavioral manifestations
can include sadness, withdraw, low self-esteem, decline in school performance, truancy, and use of
drugs or alcohol and aggression”(Simmons, 6). Due to the fact a parent is incarcerated children face
many things that physically disrupts the way a child functions. For example, according to Simmons
who reveals information from the Women's Prison & Home Association, Inc states, “Children of
offenders are five times more likely than their peers to end up in prison themselves”(Simmons, 8). As a
result of having a parent incarcerated children are five times more likely than other children to be
incarcerated just because their own parent was incarcerated. This is an interesting fact because just for

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having a parent incarcerated makes a child five times more likely. This evidence shows how having a
parent incarcerated effects a child physically and it is up to others to help children beat this statistics.
Granting that this is the case, this is another reason why children are incarcerated at a higher rate.
Children with incarcerated parents need guidance and support from their community, teachers, and
family. Based on the findings on parental incarceration, in the article, Effects of Parental Incarceration
on Young Children by Ross Parke et al, notes the physical short term and long term effects of parental
incarceration on youth. Parke mentions, Johnson 1991 (a person she referenced) during the arrest stage,
“One in five children is present at the time of the arrest and witness their mother being taken away by
authorities. More than half of the children who witness this traumatic event are under 7 years of age
and in the sole care of their mother”(Parke, 3). So just imagine being a 7 year old child or younger
witnessing their only parent being taken away by police. Can you imagine the trauma you will face
growing up. The long term effects that children experience varies depending on the developmental
level of the child. At different ages children will face and have different long term effects than they
would as they would if they were in adulthood. One long term effect is feeling like you do not have to
listen to your parent when they get released because they was not there to raise you. Parke discusses in
her article how 6% of women are pregnant during their incarceration and how only a few prisons
permit mothers to keep their babies. In most cases, mothers are only permitted only a few days of
contact before they have to return to prison. As a result of this, there is little opportunity for the mother
and the baby to bond so that the baby can form an attachment. This is one of the most critical
developmental task. Parke then states, “after the mother's is released, she comes home to an infant or
young child with whom she has not developed an emotional bond and who is not attached to her, with
the likely result that the child will have emotional and behavioral problem”(Parke, 3). The correlation
here is that due to the fact a parent is incarcerated children of all ages physically loses there parent-
child relationship. To elaborate on this, according to Geller, “First, research drawing on attachment

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theory suggests that forced separation can disrupt parent-child bonds, harming children’s social and
emotional well-being. Separation as a result of parental incarceration may be even more detrimental
than divorce and other forms of parent-child separation”(Geller, 51). With that being said, the
connection here is that forced separation from a parent harms a child. This sort of thing disrupts the
way a child physically functions. Children are more likely to exhibit antisocial behavioral and end up
just like their parents in the criminal justice system. This is also considered a long term effect because
due to having a parent incarcerated at a young age, as you start to get older you exhibit behaviors that
lead you to engage in delinquent acts. Based on the findings from the survey's handed out some youth,
community members, and probation officers believe that youth are affected more physically by their
parents being incarcerated. When asked their opinion on, “How does parental incarceration affect
children physically, emotionally, and developmentally?”, one person stated, “It affects all children
differently. Some children become withdrawn and not socialize well with ones. While other children
who have become a custom to constant parental incarceration, they will normalize the situation and
continue with business as usual”. It is apparent from the research stated above that children become
very antisocial due to having a parent in person. Another individual stated, “Incarceration of a parent
will affect a child's physical, mental, and emotional help. The cascade effect of incarceration typically
ends with longterm mental effects. For example, a youth may cry (physical) after initial shock. There
will be emotional repercussions immediately during and after. Without having a parent directly
involved with the child's life, his or her mentality will change and be shaped by other factors”(Survey).
These other factors can include the streets showing a child attention and because of that children will
turn to the streets for love. Another individual suggested that, “It affects them physically because they
are not able to live a normal life and do everyday activities with their parent when the child most need,
for example, hugging and kissing. They also are not able to be with their parent physically on important
life occasions such like graduations and birthdays”. Lastly, another participate states, “It effects them

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because they probably feel like they have to go through life alone and that the parent that is
incarcerated doesn't care about them. They might feel like the only option for them is to get into trouble
to feel close to the parent”(Survey). Simmons highlights that during the ages of 11-14, “the
development characteristics of these youth are increasing abstract thinking, future oriented behavior,
aggression, and puberty, their developmental task is the ability to work productively with others,
control emotions”. She then states that the influencing factors that can effect that is parent-child
separation and enduring trauma and the effects of this is rejection of limits on behavior, trauma-reactive
behaviors”(Simmons, 7). Simmons also mentions adolescence 15-18 years old, “the development
characteristics emotional crisis and confusion, adult sexual development, abstract thinking, and
independence, and their developmental task are achieves identity, engages in adult work and
relationships, resolve conflicts with family and society”(Simmons, 7). Lastly, she states, that like above
the factors that influence this change is separation from parent and this disrupts the above
characteristics and tasks. This disruption causes these adolescence to terminate their parent-child
relationships and intergenerational crime and incarceration”(Simmons, 7). This evidence suggest that
children at certain ages have different reactions to their parents being incarcerated over a period of
time. This is important to note because this shows us how at certain ages children have this certain way
they're suppose to develop and because of their parents this is altered and destroyed. Similarly,
Simmons presented us with another chart that shows intergenerational behaviors, crime, and the
trauma. Simmons states, parent-child separation causes sadness and grief, and the reactive behavior is
withdrawal, and children cope with this by abusing substances, and the criminal activity they are likely
to be jailed for is drug possession”(Simmons, 8). Another thing Simmons address is when a child
witness violence they have anxiety attacks, and their reactive behavior is hypervigilence. Children cope
with this by being involved in gang activity and their criminal activity consists of accessary to
homicide”(Simmons, 8). The connection here is that due to parental separation youth are more likely to

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be involved in criminal activity and have issues that prevent them from being a successful person.
Furthermore, children who have parents who are incarcerated act out big time due to the simple fact
that they miss their parent and feel alone. As identified by Reed, “While some young adolescents aged
11 to 14 may overcome their parent's absence, poverty, stigma, and multiple placements, many children
act out”(Reed and Reed, 160). Children with incarcerated parents also become very aggressive towards
others. Children are also disproportionately affected by parental incarceration and because of that they
become involved in risky sexual behaviors. By way of example, in the article, Correlates of the Sex
Trade among African-American Youth Living in Urban Public Housing: Assessing the Role of Parental
Incarceration and Parental Substance Use by Von Nebbit pointed out that, “Urban African–American
youth are disproportionately affected by parental incarceration and the consequences of parental
substance use. Many adapt to the loss of their parents to prison or drug addiction by engaging in health-
risk behaviors; sometimes to meet their basic needs and also to cope with feelings of loss or both.
These health-risk behaviors may include substance use and trading sex for commodities (e.g., food,
money, or drugs)”(Nebbit, 383). He argues this behavior places youth at risk for health problems as
well as social. Some of those problems include sexual exploitation, unwanted pregnancy, and sexual
victimization. All these factors contribute to a child being physically destroyed by having their parent's
incarcerated. Based on the information stated throughout this paragraph it is best to conclude on some
solutions to helping children cope with the physical pain of having a parent incarcerated. Based on the
findings that show parental incarceration effects youth physically it can be argued by Reed that, “Crisis
intervention counseling for children following the arrest of a parent can reduce the immediate and long-
term negative effects of that experience, as well as provide reliable information about the process in
which the parent in involved and referral to sources of ongoing support for family members”(Reed and
Reed, 162). Currently, there are no programs of this kind that currently exists in the United States to
help children. For the family of the children/caregiver can do things as well such as alleviating the

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child's uncertainty by trying to answer questions best to there ability. For example, some questions may
be when will I see mom again. Another thing caregivers can do is reassure the child. Even if the child is
young let them know that their parent did not leave them and they will be back.
Effects on Youth Mentally and Emotionally
Having considered how parental incarceration effects youth physically, it is also important to look
at how parental incarceration affects youth mentally and emotionally. Throughout this paragraph you
will see some overlapping of concepts from the previous paragraphs due to the fact they are all similar.
Children with incarcerated parents are three times more likely to suffer from depression and behavioral
problems. Parental incarceration is very detrimental to children. Children who face having a parent in
prison not only face being three times as likely to suffer from depression, but also they are twice as
likely to suffer from learning disabilities and anxiety. Everyday is a difficult time for children who face
the reality that their parent is incarcerated. In fact, Seymour reveals from the Osborne association that,
Most children with incarcerated parents experience a broad range of emotions, including fear, anxiety,
anger, sadness, loneliness, and guilt. They may exhibit low self-esteem, depression, and emotional
withdrawal from friends and family”. She then states, “They may also begin to act out inappropriately,
become disruptive in the classroom, or engage in other antisocial behaviors”(Seymour, 472). These
types of emotional and behavioral difficulties are very much linked to the separation of the parent-child
relationship. In addition to this, The Osborne Association reveals that, “Traumatic events in childhood,
including separation from a parent, may cause long-lasting changes in the brain, leading to adverse
health and mental health outcomes”(Osborne Association). As explained by Parke, “There is
controversy surrounding the wisdom of providing children with information concerning the arrest and
the reasons for their parent's incarceration.”(Parke, 3). This evidence suggest that telling a child about
there parent will have some what of a better affect on children compared to if you did not tell them
where their parents were. To elaborate, Parke states, “Some argue that children ought to be protected

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from the knowledge that their parents are incarcerated as a way of minimizing the trauma associated
with the separation”, however, “Others argue that the emotional distress of children is exacerbated by
the unwillingness of family, friends, or caregivers to discuss their parent's incarceration”(Parke, 3).
With regards to this I think it is better to discuss to the child where their parents are. The reason I say
this is because imagine how a child will feel if they woke up on day and their parents were gone. How
do you think that child will feel. This is then where a child will feel like their parents abandoned them
and then that leads a child to suffer mentally and emotionally. When a person tells a child where their
parent is it best to leave out certain details of their parents arrest. For example, if a mother or father was
caught selling illegal drugs that shouldn't be told to a child due to the reasoning being that can mentally
effect a child. In addition to this, Reed acknowledges that, “The cumulative effects of parental
involvement in the criminal justice system appear in 15 to 18 years olds. Their experience have left
many with negative attitudes toward law enforcement and the criminal justice system”(Reed and Reed
160). This research goes to show how the long term effects of having a parent incarcerated can
mentally and emotionally effect your judgement towards law enforcement. Children believe that law
enforcement took their parents away from them and didn't think about how their lives will forever be
destroyed and hurt. Furthermore, Reed states, “The developmental of autonomy and initiative in
children aged two to six may be compromised by the trauma of witnessing parental arrest and the loss
of a parent due to incarceration. The long-term effects of these experiences may be worse at this stage
of childhood...because young children have the ability to perceive and remember traumatic events, but
they cannot process or adjust to trauma without assistance”(Reed and Reed, 160). This research shows
that children ultimately are effected mentally because of the traumatic experience of witnessing their
parent's being arrest. Can you imagine being 4 or 5 seeing a police kicking down your door and
arresting your mother or father. This child will be impacted mentally and emotionally because of this
traumatizing situation. Children will always have nightmares and flashbacks of witnessing their parents

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being taken away by law enforcement. Also we all know how aggressive officers can be when it comes
to physically removing someone and arresting them, so just imagine the impact this has on a child's
mind. To further back this up in the article, Parental Incarceration, attachment, and child
psychopathology by Joseph and Lynne Murray points out, “During parental arrest, children can feel
shocked, bewildered, and scared. Arrest often occurs at night or in the early morning, when people are
likely to be at home with their families. The experience is often unexpected and sometimes
violent”(Murray and Murray, 292). To elaborate more, Parke notes that, “...70% of young children with
incarcerated mothers had emotional or psychological problems. Children exhibit internalizing
problems, such as anxiety, withdrawal, hypervigilance, depression, shame and guilt. And, perhaps most
clearly, young children exhibit externalizing behaviors such as anger, aggression, and hostility toward
caregivers and siblings”(Parke, 5). Children who have to witness the severity of this are left with
broken hearts and spirits. Furthermore, when told on the survey, “Having an incarcerated parent effects
youth physically, mentally, and emotionally? Which do you think effects youth 'Most'?”, mainly
everyone stated that it effects them mentally and emotionally. One response stated, I think having an
incarcerated parent impacts a child emotionally,…I know stress can take a toll on your body, so I think
it impacts young people emotionally first, and you'll see it take a toll on their minds and bodies”.
Another participate stated, “I think youth would be affected more emotionally because they can be
teased in school and sad when they parents can't show to school events and when their absent in their
lives in general”(Survey) This relates to what Murray pointed when he discussed how children talked
about they were teased by others in class when their parents couldn't show up. The child stated, he
would always cry while walking home because his teachers or classmates didn't know where his
parents was and he wasn't going to let them know he was in jail(Murray and Murray, 294). Another
participate in the survey pointed out, “There's no one way to characterize either trait. In my opinion
when either or both parent is incarcerated, the bond between child and parent is broken. Trust is altered,

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which triggers various emotions such as anger, fear, disappointment, etc. The mind ultimately signals
the emotions which triggers to the physical being of the youth, especially if the youth is removed and
placed in foster care”(survey). Throughout this paragraph we can point some long term and short term
effects that parental incarceration has on youth mentally and emotionally. One short term effect would
be loneliness, abandonment, and emotional withdrawal this can only be true if the parent has a short
sentence and will be reunited with the child. Some long term effects include depression, sleeplessness,
and eating and sleeping disorders. These are things we see present in children who have parents with
longer sentences and multiple home transitions. Now that we've discussed possible effects; it is
important to end on possible solutions to dealing with some of these issues. Research shows that
reassurance is one of the most major components that can help children cope with having a parent
incarcerated. Also there needs to be support program to help children of all ages deal with the various
emotions they experience and feel. Support groups will be a tremendous help on getting children to feel
better about the unfortunately circumstances they've been hit with. In fact, Reed suggested possible
interventions to help children with incarcerated parents. Reed stated, “Therapeutic interventions to help
traumatized children master effects of current and previous traumas and overcome future trauma by
improving individual coping skills. The Center of Children of Incarcerated Parents provides
community-based therapeutic services for young children of prisoners through its Early Therapeutic
interventions Project”(Reed and Reed, 162).
Effects on Youth Financially
After we discussed the way parental incarceration effects youth mentally and emotionally, it is
important we discuss briefly how parental incarceration effects youth financially. The financial
responsibilities of a child is suppose to be the responsibility of the parent, but what happens when that
parent is incarcerated. Who is left to provide for the unforgotten? Most of the time children of the
incarcerated are faced with residential instability. Children's homes and family lives are seen as primary

19. Moss 18
environmental context that influences their social, cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physical
development. Children are often deprived of income when one of their parents becomes incarcerated.
More than 46 million people live in poverty as of today. This is the people who are not in America's top
1%. These individuals consist of people who are incarcerated, welfare recipients, single parents home,
and two parent homes. According to Geller, “...fathers’ incarceration may impact children through
family economic circumstances. The incarceration of a father, even when parents are no longer
romantically involved, often leads to decreases in household resources. Pay for work done in prison is
meager, and returning offenders are often unable to find work or are relegated to low-paying jobs or the
informal economy. Families suffer from the loss of fathers’ financial support and are at greater risk for
material hardship. Resource deprivation and any resulting instability are detrimental to family and child
well-being”(Geller, et.al, 51). In addition to this, in the article, The Mass Incarceration of parents in
America Issues of race/Ethnicity, Collateral damage to Children & Prisoner Reentry by Holly Foster
and John Hagan states, “Single-parent extended families or foster parents left to provide for children
(following a resident parent's incarceration) may simply have less money and time to invest in children.
In turn, older children may have to assume unexpected responsibilities, for example, caring for younger
children, and they may be diverted from school and into early or unplanned labor force participation to
reduce demands on or to supplement household income. Thus, imprisonment may more deeply alter
family and community life than often realized, straining relationships and breaking apart “fragile
families”(Foster and Hagan, 183). This research suggest that since caregivers or parents can't provide
financially for their children, the older children has to drop what there doing and work. Older youth
may also participate in illegal activity to try and provide for his younger siblings and parents. This is
another reason why older youth end up in jail as well due to the fact they are trying to feed their
siblings and can't. In addition to this Geller et al states, “Children of incarcerated parents also face
considerable instability in a number of aspects of their home life. They are significantly less likely to

20. Moss 19
live with both parents than their counterparts. They are more likely to receive public assistance and
more likely to experience material hardship (by either measure) following a father’s incarceration. In
addition, children whose parents have been incarcerated experience significant residential instability,
moving more frequently than those whose parents were never incarcerated.”(Geller et al, 1196). This
research goes to show how children are struggling financial to survive due to many factors such as
poverty and multiple home placements. The biggest factors here that effects youth financially is the fact
that their parent is incarcerated and can not provide for them, although most parents in prison live in
poverty and collect assistance. Another essential thing to bring up is the fact that parents can lose
access to government assistance if they have a felony. Can imagine how that is going to hurt a family
who is poor? This will be a never ending cycle if the parent gets released from prison. What I mean by
this is if a parent is charged with a felony and is later released after serving a few years. When that
parent gets out he or she has to immediately get back on their feet. Not to mention, government
assistance is made for families who struggle to provide for their families. In order to receive benefits
you must not have a felony. If this parent has a felony what is he or she left to do? This parent has no
choice, but to involve themselves in illegal activity such as selling drugs so that they can provide for
their children. Some solutions to this problem here is changing the requirements for government
assistance. They should totally eliminate the rule that states individuals with a felony can not receive
benefits from the government. If this was eliminated then we would have children across America who
can have a little bit of financial help to provide their basic necessities.
Needs, Challenges, and Recommendations
Considering the research provided above you can see that children with incarcerated parents have
many needs and challenges that are not met. In spite of the growing prison population you would think
there are services and programs to help youth, but unfortunately youth needs and services are invisible
in this society. Some of the challenges youth face is dropping out of school because they are struggling

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and/or embarrassed, low academic achievement, and greater involvement with the juvenile justice
system. Other challenges children also are faced with is depression, aggression, and many other
developmental problems due to having a parent incarcerated for a period of time. Children have to deal
with a very stressful life that involves economic changes, relocation, and separation. Not to mention,
they also worry about where there next meals is going to come from and the embarrassment of having
their parent in jail. There is always a need for money, food, and shelter when you're a child who has a
parent or parents incarcerated. Some challenges that can be thrown in their way is crime and drugs.
These are also some of the challenges children face growing up in poverty and with a parent who is
currently doing time. A really big challenge that I have yet to mention, is trying not to be a statistic. On
my survey when asked, Do you know someone who was or currently are/is effected by a parent or
guardian being incarcerated?”, one person stated, “...a 15 year old has a dad in prison for life. The
young mans mother took him to see his dad every weekend when he was younger so they can have
some kind of bond although the dad was never coming home. As the boy got older, he felt his dad
could not tell him anything because he was in prison. Well, the kid started hanging out with the wrong
crowd after he gave up on his dad and now the young man is deceased” (Survey). When you have a
parent in jail people think that you're either going to end up like them or you're going to be killed due to
the many issues thrown at you. Unfortunately, this person was murder. If this young man was able to
receive some sort of counseling to help him deal with this then he would still be here today. Fathers
play a huge role in the shaping of their sons and unfortunately this young man didn't receive the
guidance he needed. Children who have parents that are incarcerated are already consider at risk due to
the fact their parent or parents are incarcerated. A few probation officers in my survey revealed that,
“Due to budget cuts not many programs are offer to youth who are at-risk” and other stated, “not much
help is given to the children she work with until they actually end up in the system and even then
limited programs are available”(Survey). Furthermore, another question asked on the survey was,

22. Moss 21
“What do you think are some of the needs and challenges of children with incarcerated parents?” and
overall, I received a few different responses. One participate stated, Instead of having two parents they
only have one, leaving the parental burdens on one parent. Their needs aren't met and they are not able
to connect with that parent causing damage to their relationship”. Another stated, “The mind ultimately
signals the emotions (need for psychological services) mentally (need for emotional support and
mentorship) and physically (need for physician as the aforementioned could trigger depression, drug,
and alcohol abuse, etc)...which can and will either break the body down and/or kill them (be it extrinsic
means or internal means)”. With regard to this, according to the article, Children of Incarcerated
Parents: How a Mentoring Program Can Make a Difference by Janice Laakso and Julie Nygaard
acknowledges that, “a mentor who offers social support can improve behavioral outcomes”, she then
states, “They found a strong linkage between beneficial outcomes and intensity and quality of
relationships established between mentors and youth. These qualities in the relationships included
frequency of contact, emotional closeness, and longevity”(Laakso and Nygaard, 12). It is apparent that
having a mentor can help a child who has a parent in prison overcome issues they struggle with. I agree
with this statement because currently, I mentor youth at the SF juvenile hall and we were told the
importance of mentor-mentee contact and duration of our relationship. Having a mentor or someone
you look up to who's on the right path can encourage a child to follow the right path. This also relates
to what a few participants in my survey expressed. They stated, “Youth need a support system that can
get them the right guidance and not follow into the same steps, a support system that can help them
focus on the positive and transfer their experience into something positive”, another stated, “Emotional
and financial stability are the needs along with guidance, support, and love. Challenges for children are
related to surviving and attempting to thrive in an environment lacking some of the key elements
optimal for success”, lastly, another participate express, “Children need to understand that their parent's
absence doesn't mean they don't love them. Children need loving support to work through their fear for

23. Moss 22
their own safety and value and maintain their relationship with their parent in whatever ways they
can”(survey). To elaborate, assimilating back into society after being incarcerated is a big challenge,
considering how unlikely these individuals are to obtain a job. Because they're unlikely to obtain jobs,
they're likely to be financially unstable. This may result in illegal acts to obtain money and we can see
how the criminal justice system is nearly an unbreakable cycle. Crime breaks up families and once a
parent gets caught then that family becomes broken again and then thats when the mental depression
and the behavioral issues start again. To end it best to discuss possible recommendations to help
children cope with having a parent incarcerated and a two individuals couldn't have been more clear in
what youth need. Reed suggest, “Children support groups that provide social support in a structured
setting that is safe for children to express their concerns and to help dispel the sense of shame
connected with parental incarceration”, and also, “Crisis nurseries for very young children, 0 to 6 years
of age, are temporary residential care settings, designed to prevent children's exposure to acute trauma
such as parental arrest... domestic violence. One such program, the Bay Area Crisis Nursery in
Concord, California, provides services for 400 children annually”(Reed and Reed, 162). The goes to
show there are organization out there trying to successfully help children who have been impacted by
having a parent incarcerated. Also there should be mental health and educational assessments to
support and identify areas that children need more attention focused on. Lastly, according to the
Osborne Association, Support services should be extended to all members of a child's support system,
including alternative caregivers, who are susceptible to “psychological risk and parenting stress”, and
the incarcerated parent, when in the child's best interest”(Osborne Association, 2012).
Parenting from prison
Due to long prison sentencing, more than a third of children will reach the age of 18 while their parent
is in prison. More importantly, it is important to discuss whether or not its beneficial to have a

24. Moss 23
relationship with a parent while incarcerated. Seymour pointed out, “Incarcerated parents who hope to
reunify with their children must be able to complete their service plans and maintain meaningful
contact with their children while they are in prison”(Seymour, 482). In addition, Boudin states,
“Children also have a right to contact with their incarcerated parents. Article 9 of the CRC requires that
parties “respect the right of the child who is separated from one or both parents to maintain personal
relations and direct contact with both parents on a regular basis, except if it contrary to the child's best
interest”(Boudin, 84). This leads into my survey question when asked, “Do you think it is beneficial for
a child to have a relationship with their parent who is incarcerated? Why or Why not?”, with this
question I received mix emotions. One person stated, “It is beneficial for a child to have a relationship
with a parent that is incarcerated. Although, the parent may not have served as a great role model prior,
he or she can do so while in prison. Prison can change a person. People rarely want to “stay in prison”.
Hence, people who are incarcerated typically want to guide their loved ones in the right direction”
another participate stated, “No, because a parent cannot set a good example behind bars and they are
not in a stable state to even make good decision or give advice”(survey). Overall, most people stood in
the middle when it can to answering this question, some people believe it is beneficial, while others
think its not. There reason of being is what if the parent was a serial murderer then the children
shouldn't have a relationship with someone who committed such crimes. In the article, Parenting from
Prison: Helping Children And Mothers by P.J Thompson and N.J Harm states, “Family relationships
are clearly disrupted by incarceration. Health professionals can help bridge the gap by supporting
parent education for prisoners to strengthen family relationships and reduce recidivism and relapse.
Increasing mothers’ parenting competency could dramatically alter the lives of their children who
otherwise may become offenders themselves” (Thompson and Harm, 64). Thompson and Harm also
made it clear that they found significant improvements in mothers' self-esteem and child expectations.
This research shows that health professionals are helping mothers who are in prison by helping

25. Moss 24
strengthening family relationships and increasing their ability to parent successfully when they get out.
This also goes to show that although mothers are incarcerated they are taking necessary steps to get
help so that the can better parent which also makes them feel good inside as well. Children need that
nurturing relationship from their mothers more than children need that bond from their fathers. In
addition to this, in the article, The Effectiveness of Parent Education for Incarcerated Parent: An
Evaluation of Parenting from Prison by Kristina Wilson, et al. states, “Parent education programs aim
to teach incarcerated parents new behaviors and skills that may help to lessen the negative
consequences of parental incarceration and may help to reduce the negative impact of this forced
separation on children. Providing incarcerated parents the opportunity to both learn and practice new
parenting skills in the classroom could prove valuable in easing the process of reuniting with one's
children post- release and in combating the negative consequences of parental incarceration”(Wilson et
al., 116). Parenting from prison is a good idea because just because they made one bad mistakes doesn't
mean that they can't successfully keep their children on the right path, but as you can see parents are
participating in programs that help them successful parent. This not only helps the child, but it also
helps the parent as well. To further back this up, according to Reed, “Maintaining close family ties
during incarceration has been show to result in decreased recidivism rates, improved mental health of
inmates and other family members, increased likelihood of family reunification following release, and
greater potential for parole success”(Reed and Reed, 158). It has been shown that, parents can
successfully parent from prison. This is a good benefit for maintaining a strong parent-child
relationship and reducing some of the unfortunate impacts that effect children lives.
Conclusion
As you can see, parental incarceration has numerous effects on children. The extent to which a child
will be affected depends on many variables. Some of those variables include age at which the parent

26. Moss 25
separation occurs, length of separation, and the strength of the child-parent relationship. These
variables are important to know when looking at how serve the child will be effected by their parents
being incarcerated. Although, all children are effect in some way these are the things that contribute to
how they will reactive to the separation of their parents. It was very alarming to read that children with
incarcerated parents are 6 times more as likely to end up in the juvenile justice system. This is
something that really needs to be changed. This is why we need to offer more programs for children
who are trying to cope with the separation from their parent. It is unfair to a child, to be six times more
likely to end up in the criminal justice system just because their primary caregiver is. The only way to
put a help alleviate some of this and the many other traumatic things children experience is by
reassuring a child that their parents did not abandon them, have support groups that help traumatized
children so that it can help them overcome these obstacle, be understanding because most people are
quick to judge, and lastly, counseling for parent, child, and new caregiver.

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