Female Prisoners, Mental Health, and Contact with Family and Friends

Authors

Katarzyna Celinska, CUNY John Jay CollegeFollow
Irina Fanarraga, CUNY John Jay CollegeFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Spring 4-29-2022

Abstract

The present study explores the psychological symptoms of 194 female inmates housed in a northeast state prison. Imprisoned women completed Derogatis’ (2001) Brief Symptom Inventory-18 and responded to questions on the frequency of contact with family and friends via phone calls, letters, and visitations. The results showed significant correlations between psychological symptoms and modes of contact. Multiple regression models revealed that certain types of contact with family and friends had a statistically significant impact on the self-reported psychological symptoms of female inmates. Policy implications and recommendations are discussed.

Comments

Katarzyna Celinska https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0280-6350

This article was originally published in The Prison Journal, available at DOI: 10.1177/00328855221095518