Handbook on Children with Incarcerated Parents: Research, Policy, and Practice PDF
Preview Handbook on Children with Incarcerated Parents: Research, Policy, and Practice
J. Mark Eddy · Julie Poehlmann-Tynan Editors Handbook on Children with Incarcerated Parents Research, Policy, and Practice Second Edition Handbook on Children with Incarcerated Parents J. Mark Eddy Julie Poehlmann-Tynan (cid:129) Editors Handbook on Children with Incarcerated Parents Research, Policy, and Practice Second Edition 123 Editors J.Mark Eddy Julie Poehlmann-Tynan Family Translational Research Group Human Development& Family Studies NewYork University University of Wisconsin-Madison NewYork,NY, USA Madison,WI, USA ISBN978-3-030-16706-6 ISBN978-3-030-16707-3 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-16707-3 LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2019936276 ©SpringerNatureSwitzerlandAG2019 Thisworkissubjecttocopyright.AllrightsarereservedbythePublisher,whetherthewholeor part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations,recitation,broadcasting,reproductiononmicrofilmsorinanyotherphysicalway, andtransmissionorinformationstorageandretrieval,electronicadaptation,computersoftware, orbysimilarordissimilarmethodologynowknownorhereafterdeveloped. Theuseofgeneraldescriptivenames,registerednames,trademarks,servicemarks,etc.inthis publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exemptfromtherelevantprotectivelawsandregulationsandthereforefreeforgeneraluse. Thepublisher,theauthorsandtheeditorsaresafetoassumethattheadviceandinformationin thisbookarebelievedtobetrueandaccurateatthedateofpublication.Neitherthepublishernor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material containedhereinorforanyerrorsoromissionsthatmayhavebeenmade.Thepublisherremains neutralwithregardtojurisdictionalclaimsinpublishedmapsandinstitutionalaffiliations. ThisSpringerimprintispublishedbytheregisteredcompanySpringerNatureSwitzerlandAG Theregisteredcompanyaddressis:Gewerbestrasse11,6330Cham,Switzerland To children with incarcerated parents, in awe of your strength, resilience, and perseverance. Foreword I am honored to pen the foreword to the second edition of Handbook on Children with Incarcerated Parents: Research, Policy, and Practice. As a researcher who investigates family stabilization/destabilization as mothers reenter from prison and who writes about children with parents in the criminaljusticesystem,asaprofessorwhoteachesacourseonchildrenwith parentsinthecriminaljusticesystem,andasapractitionerwhoworkswitha localreentrycoalition,Iffindthematerialcoveredinthissecondeditiontobe tremendously valuable. It is certainly timely given the current political cli- mate and the increase in the number of children with parents involved with the criminal justice system in the USA. Adistinctiveaspectofthishandbookisthattheeditorshaveassembledan interdisciplinary corpus of scholarship from authors who conduct research, design intervention programs, and contribute to social policy initiatives on children with parents in the criminal justice system. Each author does a notable job of addressing the critical clinical and developmental issues that children face when their parents are arrested, convicted, sentenced, incar- cerated,andreturnhome;eachdoesanimpressivejobinidentifyinggapsin the research, offering suggestions on areas ripe for subsequent research, and pointing us to new directions for research and social policy initiatives. Fur- thermore, the authors situate their research, their interventions, and their socialpolicyinitiativesuggestionsinacontextual–environmental–ecological theoreticalframeworkthatconsiderstheprofoundinfluenceofsociopolitical history, socioeconomic status, race and ethnicity, age, and gender on chil- dren’s outcomes when parents are incarcerated. The authors challenge those of us in the field to move beyond utilizing a unidimensional approach to measuringandinterpretingtheeffectsofparentalincarceration onchildren’s outcomes and well-being to embracing a multilayered, dynamic, and changing-systems approach. Asafield,weareencouragedbySykesandPettit(Chap.2)thatwhenwe measure children’s exposure to parental incarceration to consider “not only point in time estimates, but lifetime risk estimates as well,” as clinical and developmental outcomes may well vary according to time of measurement. Wemustbemindful,asemphasizedbyBrunsandLee(Chap.4),Siegeland Luther (Chap. 11), Burnson and Weymouth (Chap. 7), and Shlafer, Davis, and Dallaire (Chap. 8), that “not all children experience parental incarcera- tion in the same way.” Clinical and developmental outcomes vary signifi- cantly by chronological age and other demographic factors. As we design vii viii Foreword research, pose our questions, develop interventions, and craft social policy initiatives,ArdittiandMcGregor(Chap.9)remindusthatfamilies,including spouses,children,andcaregivers,are“arrested,sentenced,andincarcerated” as well. We are encouraged by Goldman, Andersen, Andersen, and Wilde- man(Chap.16)tobecognizantofthewaysinwhichsentencinglawsimpact childrenandfamilies,aswellasincarceratedmenandwomen.Wemustturn our focus, as suggested by de Haan, Mienko, and Eddy (Chap. 19), to consider children who enter the foster care system as a result of parental incarceration, as they represent a hidden and growing subpopulation of children with parents in the criminal justice system. In conclusion, as I read the chapters in this handbook in preparation for writing this foreword, I was reminded of two contemporary issues that have intersectedwithmylifethispastsummer. One,whilehome inAlabamathis summer, I had the opportunity to visit the Lynching Memorial in Mont- gomery, Alabama, and two, I have watched as the recent crisis of unac- companied immigrant minors and the imprisonment of their parents and the zerotolerancepolicyofthiscurrentadministrationhasunfolded,asdiscussed by Poehlmann-Tynan, Sugrue, Duron, Ciro, and Messex (Chap. 23). I am most disturbed by the continuing racial disparities that exist for children of colorwithparentsinthecriminaljusticesystem.Thesedisparitieshaveroots in an unequal and overly punitive justice system for men and women of color, as Bruns and Lee (Chap. 4) articulate so well. Children of color and their families experience the “spillover effects” of the incarceration of their loved ones. Unfortunately, for some children ofcolor,parentalincarceration becomesanormativedevelopmentalexperienceratherthan anon-normative developmental experience. Iamencouragedbythe“solutions”thattheinterventionresearchchapters (Chaps.12–16)offertomoveusforwardasresearchers,aspractitioners,and as advocates. Collectively, we must take a systems approach to mass incarceration and the resulting inequalities. There are practical and doable solutions that range from focusing on the building of human capital to increasing employment opportunities for those returning home, while simultaneously providing supports for children and families of the incar- cerated.Iapplaudtheeditors,J.MarkEddyandJuliePoehlmann-Tynan,for their continued persistence in raising the issues and plight of children with parents in the criminal justice system, both of which are especially well illuminated in this second edition of Handbook on Children with Incarcer- ated Parents: Research, Policy, and Practice. Yvette R. Harris Miami University Oxford, OH, USA Yvette R. Harris is Professor in the Department of Psychology at Miami University, Oxford,Ohio.SheservesasDirectoroftheCenterfortheStudyofChildrenandFamilies of the Incarcerated. She received her doctorate from the University of Florida, with a specializationincognitivedevelopment.Herscholarlyworkforthepastthreedecadeshas focusedonexaminingenvironmental/parentingcontributionstopreschoolandschool-age cognitivedevelopmentwithaspecificemphasisonAfrican-Americanchildrenandparents from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. Most recently, she has been exploring how Foreword ix familiesadjust,andespeciallychildren,whenmothersreentertheircommunityfromprison orjail.Herresearchhasbeenpublishedinavarietyofnationalandinternationaljournals. Shehasco-authoredthreebooksonAfrican-Americanchildren,withthemostrecentthe secondeditionofTheAfricanAmericanChild:DevelopmentandChallenges.Sheserved asco-editorofthebookChildrenofIncarceratedParents:TheoreticalDevelopmentaland Clinical Implications. Her advocacy work for children and families of the incarcerated includesdirectingasummercampforchildrenwithparentsinthecriminaljusticesystem andservingasaresearchconsultanttotheButler/WarrenCountyReentryCoalition. Acknowledgements Ithasbeenoveradecadesinceweworkedtogetheronthefirsteditionofthis volume. Returning to work on a new draft has provided us the opportunity not only to see how much the field has changed, but also to reflect on how our lives have changed, particularly in terms of our children and our stance toward activism. Our children who were young the first time around are now either adults or are moving into adulthood. There are new children in both of our lives, including grandchildren for one of us and stepchildren for the other. Our experienceswithourownchildrenandfamilieshavetakenplacewitheachof ushavingtheprivilegetobefree,wherewecouldseeourchildreneachday (whentheywereyoung),walkwiththemtoschool,playtogetherandwatch them play with family and friends, eat dinner together, and read with and tuck them into bed at night. We are deeply appreciative for each of these moments. They have changed our lives for the better. As these changes in our own families were occurring, each of us con- tinued to work with incarcerated parents and their families in our respective communities. Those experiences strengthened our commitments toward using findings from our research and intervention efforts to promote social justice. As a result, our research has become more policy-relevant and our dissemination efforts have been increasingly focused on attempting to make positive change, not just for individual children and families affected by incarceration, but also for communities and society at large. Mass incarcer- ation isa significant contributortoinequalityandinstability intheUSA and in other countries as well, and there is much work to do to raise awareness aboutthisandtochangeit.Weseethetragiceffectsonadailybasis,andwe hope to inspire others to work toward change, too. Thisbookisfocusedonthelivesandcontextsofchildrenwhohaveatleast oneparentwho—eithernoworinthepast—hasinvoluntarilyspenttimeaway fromtheirchildrenandfamiliesbecauseofincarceration.Separationbetween the members of a family, particularly when caused by incarceration, is a publicyetaveryprivateaffair,andapainfulonetoconsideranddiscuss.With gratitude, we acknowledge the willingness of incarcerated parents and their children and families who have shared their lives with the members of the research and practice communities, and have allowed each of us in this vol- umetheprivilegeandhonorofsharingtheirstorieswithothers.Hopefully,the xi xii Acknowledgements stories told here will help lead to better outcomes in the future for children with families who include parents with criminal justice involvement. We are thankful to each of the contributors to this second edition. We appreciate the commitment and dedication of the contributing researchers, eachofwhomconductsrigorousscienceundersometimesdifficultconditions andactivelysharestheirfindingsandinsightswithothers.Weappreciatethe hardwork,passion,andcommitmentofeachofthecontributingpractitioners and advocates; their work with children of incarcerated parents and their familiesissoimportant.Wearethankfulforeachother,andforthechanceto work together again on a project focused on areas of great importance and significance to both of us. We appreciate the unique perspectives we each bring to understanding and helping the children of incarcerated parents and their families, and the contributions that each made in conceptualizing, writing,andeditingthisvolume.Inthisregard,wecontributedequallytothe work, although our contributions were complementary. Most importantly, we recognize that this book could not have been completed without the patience and warm, generous, and unending support providedbythemembersofeachofourbelovedfamilies—forMark,hisbest friend and wife Carol, their children, Hannah, Jordan, Becca, Sarah, Emma, and Jacob, their partners and children, and parents, Betty and John and Pat and Al; and for Julie, her best friend and husband Tim, her children, Catherine,D.Michael,andJosh,andparents,CarolandMike.Bothofusare also grateful to our many students, some of whom have experienced incar- cerationthemselvesortheincarcerationofalovedoneorparent,andwhoare dedicated to improving the lives of children and families and fighting for social justice. “Eachchildbelongstoallofusandtheywillbringusatomorrowindirectrelation totheresponsibilitywehaveshowntothem.” —MayaAngelou
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