Female Offenders
Mental Health Concerns in Female Offenders
Deborah S Hagood (Bowman)
Grand Canyon University- PSY 623
September 26, 2018
Mental Health Concerns in Female Offenders
Maya Angelo (2011) said, “Being a woman is hard work” and this is correct. However, it can be more difficult to be a woman in prison and more difficult to be a woman in prison, with a mental illness. Women within prison are more likely to have a mental illness compared to men within prison. Spjeldnes, Jung, and Yamatani (2014) reported, “that jailed women were two to three times more likely to report a psychiatric disorder; overall 43.6% of female inmates were diagnosed with at least one psychiatric disorder compared to 21.6% of male inmates” (p. 80). Some female offenders come from broken homes, homelessness, substance abuse, and may often have children of their own. Mental health issues may be the result of substance abuse, physical abuse, childhood issues, and/or homelessness. Fagan and Ax (2011) report, “The pervasiveness of child and adult victimization among female offenders is a likely precursor to the high levels of mental illness that have been observed” (p. 216). It could be determined that women within these categories are likely to be offenders due to their mental illness, but also because there was no help provided to them growing up. It is possible that a woman struggles each day not knowing that she has a mental illness, until it is too late. Trauma in a woman’s life can be one of the main causes of mental illness as well as why she is serving time in prison. Trauma can come in many forms but ultimately causes the person to avoid the issue and detach from life in general (Fagan & Ax, 2011). These avoidance tactics are not successful and can lead to other issues such as substance abuse.
Childhood trauma leading to post traumatic stress which manifests into a substance abuse problem, causing the woman to engage in criminal activity to support the substance abuse, thus resulting in the outcome; prison. This is a pattern that is all too familiar to those involved in the prison system. According to Fagan and Ax (2011):
Approximately 40% of the female offenders, in contrast to 32% of the male offenders,
were under the influence of drugs at the time of their arrest. Approximately one third of
the women acknowledged that obtaining money to support their drug habit was the
motivation for their criminal acts (p. 217).
Despite these significant findings of mental illness among female offenders, there is help for these women while in prison. However, this was not always the main concern of the prison system. According to Spjeldnes, Jung, and Yamatani (2014), “Historically, intervention strategies targeted men because of their predominance in the incarceration population” (p. 76). Yet with the rise in women being put into prison and the high level of mental illness amongst these women, there has been a shift towards implementing programs for female offenders.
The first step towards treating female offenders, according to Covington & Bloom (2006), is to create a safe environment and to be aware of the significant pattern of emotional, physical, and sexual abuse that many of these women have experienced throughout their lifetime. It is essential that the prison avoid causing further damage to these offenders. Covington and Bloom (2006) report that several guiding principles are in place to ensure female offenders receive appropriate help while in prison; two of these principles are, “Develop policies, practices, and programs that are relational and promote healthy connections to children, family, significant others, and the community” (p. 4). The second being, “Address substance abuse, trauma, and mental health issues through comprehensive, integrated, and culturally relevant services and appropriate supervision” (p. 4). These two principles are extremely important to consider when treating female offenders as they relate well to women. Programs that are available specifically for women within the prison system include programs that promote self-reliance, mental health plus substance abuse, women only groups, and family therapy (Covington & Bloom, 2006). Encouraging women to play to their strengths and hone their skills can give her a sense of self-reliance and can legally provide for themselves, and for her family if applicable. Under the gender-responsive treatment program, Covington and Bloom (2014) gave specific areas in which should be created within the therapeutic environment; “Attachment, containment, communication, involvement, and agency” (p. 12). These are all areas that are specific to a woman’s needs after she leaves prison and in helping with outside familial relationships.
When a woman is incarcerated there are instances in which she has left a child behind while she serves a prison sentence. Laux, et al. (2011) stated, “There are 1.3 million American children who have a mother who is involved in the criminal justice system” (p. 160). It should be a high priority to ensure that not only is the female offender’s mental health cared for whilst in prison, but also to ensure the relationships between mother and child are cared for. One way a prison psychologist can ensure a healthy relationship between mother and child is to find treatment for the mother during incarceration, resulting in a positive reintegration back into society. This may come in the form of career counseling which can positively impact the lives of the children and mother once released. According to Covington and Bloom (2006), “Improving socioeconomic outcomes for women requires providing opportunities through education and training so they can support themselves and their children” (p. 5). A prison counselor may also implement family counseling in order to repair relationships between mother and child. Covington and Bloom (2006) believed:
Understanding the role of relationships in women’s lives is fundamental because the
theme of connections and relationships threads throughout the lives of female
offenders. When the concept of relationship is incorporated into policies, practices,
and programs, the effectiveness of the system or agency is enhanced (p. 4).
Allowing regular visitation between children and mothers within prison can be beneficial in repairing any damage to the relationship. If the environment is child friendly and the child agrees, this can be beneficial to the child as well. This will help ease the transition after the mother is released as well.
Before a female offender is released back into society, it is important that she possess the tools needed to successfully reintegrate into her community and family. Education, vocational training, and mental health services should be the focus of the prison to prepare each female. As per Spjeldnes, Jung, and Yamatani (2014), “a higher percentage of women communicated their interest in receiving various in-jail services including mental health, drug and alcohol, parenting, and family counseling” (p. 90). Reentry programs that include these areas of counseling can create a positive outcome for the female offender once she is released. Halfway housing for those in need of housing is also an important factor in reintegration. If the female offender was homeless prior to incarceration and no family, it is extremely important for the female offender and prison to set up a halfway house situation to prevent recidivism.
Female offenders have not always been the focus of rehabilitation in prison. As female incarceration rates increase with mental health issues, the need for treatment programs have become an important. Ensuring that each program is specifically formulated to help the female offender with substance abuse, mental health issues, and/or post traumatic stress is an important factor within these programs. Overall, it should be the goal of the prison to help female offenders while in the prison environment and help with a successful reentry into society to prevent an increase in recidivism rates among women.
References
AZ Quotes. (n.d.). Maya Angelou. Retrieved from https://www.azquotes.com/quote/520761
Covington, S. and Bloom, B. (2006). Gender-responsive treatment and services in correctional
settings. Women and Therapy, 29(3/4).
Fagan, T. and Ax, R. (2011). Correctional mental health: From theory to practice. Thousand
Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
Laux, J., Calmes, S., Moe, J., Dupuy, P., Cox, J., Ventura, L., Williamson, C., Benjamin, B., &
Lambert, E. (2011). The career counseling needs of mothers in the criminal justice
system. Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 50. doi: 10.1080/10509674.2011.560551
Spjeldnes, S., Jung, H., & Yamatani, H. (2014). Gender differences in jail populations: Factors to
consider in reentry strategies. Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 53.
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