Abstract
An attachment-based, psychotherapeutic parent education course was created for incarcerated
 mothers and fathers to improve their ability to provide positive parenting and a more stable home environment for their children. The current study assessed the effects of this parenting curriculum on parents’ tendencies to be abusive, their sense of efficacy and satisfaction as a parent, their psychological distress, and their knowledge of child development and positive child guidance strategies. Results of pre-post assessments showed a significant improvement in parents’ sense of efficacy and satisfaction in the parenting role; their knowledge, skills, and behavior as a parent; their understanding of child development; their knowledge of alternatives to using corporal punishment; establishing appropriate parent-child boundaries; and they were less likely to view their child’s independence as a threat. Females showed a significant decrease in distress symptoms. Results are discussed in terms of the critical need for effective, high-quality parent education to break the intergenerational cycle of poor parenting for this at-risk population.
Highlights
An attachment-based, psychotherapeutic parent education course was created for incarcerated mothers and fathers to help improve their ability to provide positive parenting and a more stable home environment for their children
Children of incarcerated parents are more likely to exhibit emotional and behavioral problems compared to children whose caregivers have never been arrested (Phillips & Dettlaff, 2009)
The tragic early life experiences of incarcerated parents and the instability of their current life experiences diminish their ability to provide positive, skilled parenting for their own children: not surprisingly, studies show that children of incarcerated parents are more likely to experience attachment disruptions and disorganized attachments (Dallaire, 2007; Myers et al, 1999). These findings suggest that if parents were more competent in their parenting skills, fewer problematic behaviors in children would develop, thereby helping to improve their developmental outcome and lessen the risk of them becoming justice-involved as they become older (e.g., Heckman, 2010; Patterson, Reid, & Dishon, 1992; Reid, Patterson, & Snyder, 2002; Turner & Peck, 2002)
Summary
An attachment-based, psychotherapeutic parent education course was created for incarcerated mothers and fathers to help improve their ability to provide positive parenting and a more stable home environment for their children. When their parents are arrested, many children behave in even more emotionally and behaviorally disordered ways, especially when their new caregiving situations are unstable (e.g., Nesmith & Ruhland, 2008; Phillips & Harm, 1997; Poehlmann, 2005a; Dallaire, Loper, Poehlmann & Shear, 2010) The instability of their new caregiving situation is a likely outcome since mothers in prison or jail often have difficult pre-incarceration histories including sexual, physical, and substance abuse, mental illness, medical problems, and homelessness (Glaze & Mauschak, 2008; Mumola & Karberg, 2006). Children of incarcerated women are at high risk for receiving poor parenting prior to incarceration for a number of reasons including poverty (Gabel & Johnston, 1995; Kampfner, 1995), instability in family life that often involves living with multiple caregivers (Johnston, 1995; Phillips & Bloom, 1998; Raimon et al, 2009), domestic violence (Greene et al, 2000), community violence (Smarsh & Myers, 2001), physical and sexual abuse (Green et al, 2000), substance abuse, and criminal behavior (Greene et al, 2000; Johnston, 1992; Murray & Farrington, 2008; Wilson & Howell, 1993)
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