The following essay will critically discuss the appropriateness of incarcerated mothers to maintain contact with their children. Due to scholars (Christian and Kennedy 2011; Murray and Farrington 2005) considering visitation the most ‘realistic mean of contact between inmates and their children’ (Christian and Kennedy 2011: 56) this essay will focus on the effects of visitation on the children’s wellbeing. Thus an emphasis will be put on the type of effects produced by these changes in the children’s family life while also exploring the impact on their behavioural tendencies by approaching themes such as shame, bullying and social stigma (Kjellstrand et al. 2012). Additionally, this paper will address other issues such as costs of visitation
…show more content…
Under the principles described by the attachment theory (ref) when a child experiences the incarceration of his mother, his relationship with his caregiver is destructively affected eventually leading to a variety of behavioural problems (Murray and Farrington 2005). Recent studies (Bretherton and Munholland 2008; Shlafer and Poehlmann 2010) show that children who are deprived of maternal upbringing and care have a tendency to externalise their behaviour in a negative manner due to having ’insecure caregiver attachments that can affect their peer relationships, lower self-esteem, and even hinder children’s ability to exhibit empathy toward others’ (Shlafer and Poehlmann, 2010: 164). Therefore by allowing female prisoners to maintain regular and good contact with their children via visitation children not only might adjust better during separation from their mother and therefore maintain a more stable relationship with their caregiver, but emotional stability can be achieved at an earlier stage in the child’s adaptation process in regards to his mother’s incarceration …show more content…
Nevertheless the few researchers (Trice and Brewster 2004; Kierkus and Baer 2002) that have examined samples of adolescents found that low levels of visitation are directly linked to a predicted high level of engagement in criminal activities on behalf of the child. Therefore as previously argued, not only children might re-build their damaged relationship with their caregiver if they have direct contact through visitation with their mothers but visitation can have wider societal implications such as lowering the children’s tendency in becoming involved in criminal activities and therefore reducing the general level of crime. Giving the fact that in the year 2013/2014 the annual average cost for a place per prisoner was £33,785 (NOMS, 2014), by tackling the children’s criminal behavioural tendencies at such an early, it consequently reduces the level of imprisonment and the government’s costs allocated to such purposes. Hence, such positive consequences can benefit the wider community due to the government being able to invest the saved
Under the principles described by the attachment theory (ref) when a child experiences the incarceration of his mother, his relationship with his caregiver is destructively affected eventually leading to a variety of behavioural problems (Murray and Farrington 2005). Recent studies (Bretherton and Munholland 2008; Shlafer and Poehlmann 2010) show that children who are deprived of maternal upbringing and care have a tendency to externalise their behaviour in a negative manner due to having ’insecure caregiver attachments that can affect their peer relationships, lower self-esteem, and even hinder children’s ability to exhibit empathy toward others’ (Shlafer and Poehlmann, 2010: 164). Therefore by allowing female prisoners to maintain regular and good contact with their children via visitation children not only might adjust better during separation from their mother and therefore maintain a more stable relationship with their caregiver, but emotional stability can be achieved at an earlier stage in the child’s adaptation process in regards to his mother’s incarceration …show more content…
Nevertheless the few researchers (Trice and Brewster 2004; Kierkus and Baer 2002) that have examined samples of adolescents found that low levels of visitation are directly linked to a predicted high level of engagement in criminal activities on behalf of the child. Therefore as previously argued, not only children might re-build their damaged relationship with their caregiver if they have direct contact through visitation with their mothers but visitation can have wider societal implications such as lowering the children’s tendency in becoming involved in criminal activities and therefore reducing the general level of crime. Giving the fact that in the year 2013/2014 the annual average cost for a place per prisoner was £33,785 (NOMS, 2014), by tackling the children’s criminal behavioural tendencies at such an early, it consequently reduces the level of imprisonment and the government’s costs allocated to such purposes. Hence, such positive consequences can benefit the wider community due to the government being able to invest the saved