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Incarceration trajectories of mothers in state and federal prisons and their relation to the mother’s mental health problems and child’s risk of incarceration

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Incarceration trajectories of mothers in state and federal prisons and their relation to the mother’s mental health problems and child’s risk of incarceration

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Incarceration Trajectories of Mothers in State and Federal Prisons and Their Relation to the
Mother’s Mental Health Problems and Child’s Risk of Incarceration

by

Qianwei Zhao

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
[SOCIAL WORK]

May 2020

Copyright 2020 Qianwei Zhao
ii
Table of Contents
List of Tables ................................................................................................................................. iii
List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ iv
Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... v
Chapter 1: Incarceration Trajectories of Women Who Are Mothers: A Nationally Representative
Study of State and Federal Prisoners .............................................................................................. 1
Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1
Methods....................................................................................................................................... 5
Results ......................................................................................................................................... 9
Discussion ................................................................................................................................. 11
Conclusions ............................................................................................................................... 15
Chapter 2: Incarceration Trajectories and Mental Health Problems Among Mothers Imprisoned
in State and Federal Correctional Facilities: A Nationwide Study ............................................... 21
Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 21
Methods..................................................................................................................................... 25
Results ....................................................................................................................................... 29
Discussion ................................................................................................................................. 32
Conclusions ............................................................................................................................... 35
Chapter 3: Maternal Incarceration Trajectories and the Intergenerational Transmission of
Imprisonment: A Nationwide Study ............................................................................................. 43
Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 43
Methods..................................................................................................................................... 47
Results ....................................................................................................................................... 51
Discussion ................................................................................................................................. 54
Conclusions ............................................................................................................................... 57
References ..................................................................................................................................... 61

iii
List of Tables
Table 1. 1. Using fit statistics to select the number of groups to include in the model ................ 16
Table 1. 2. Parameter estimates for the final trajectory model with four groups ......................... 17
Table 1. 3. Sociodemographic characteristics, family background, and incarceration experiences
among incarcerated mothers with distinct incarceration trajectories, SISFCF 2004 (N=881) ..... 18

Table 2. 1. Sociodemographic characteristics and mental health problems among mothers
imprisoned in state and federal correctional facilities, SISFCF 2004 (N=881) ............................ 37
Table 2. 2. Sociodemographic characteristics and mental health problems among mothers with
distinct incarceration trajectories, SISFCF 2004 (N=881) ........................................................... 38
Table 2. 3. Bivariate statistics: Incarceration trajectories, sociodemographic characteristics, and
mental health problems among mothers in state and federal prisons, SISFCF 2004 (N=881) ..... 39
Table 2. 4. Multivariate statistics: Incarceration trajectories and mental health problems among
mothers in state and federal prisons, SISFCF 2004 (N=881) ....................................................... 41

Table 3. 1. Sociodemographic characteristics and incarceration experiences among mothers with
distinct incarceration trajectories and their child's criminal justice involvement, SISFCF 2004
(N=881) ......................................................................................................................................... 58
Table 3. 2. Multivariate statistics: Maternal incarceration trajectories and child's criminal justice
involvement, SISFCF 2004 (N=881) ............................................................................................ 59

iv
List of Figures
Figure 1. 1. Retrospective histories of incarceration: Months of incarceration per year (N=881) 20

Figure 2. 1. Retrospective histories of incarceration: Months of incarceration per year (N=881) 42

Figure 3. 1. The mothers' retrospective histories of incarceration: Months of incarceration per
year (N=881) ................................................................................................................................. 60

v
Abstract
Background and Purpose: Literature suggests that imprisoned women with children have a
significantly higher prevalence of mental health problems than those in the general population
and imprisoned women without children. Children with maternal incarceration experiences also
have substantially higher incarceration rates than their counterparts without maternal
incarceration experiences. Although incarceration is a critical social determinant of the
functioning and well-being of the mother and child, research regarding its role on the mother’s
mental health problems and the intergenerational transmission of confinement have revealed
contradictory findings. These inconsistencies are potentially attributable to the different
incarceration histories across samples that are masked by the use of a dichotomized incarceration
history measure. This dissertation project used comprehensive incarceration trajectories over the
life course to determine the nature and array of incarceration histories associated with the mental
health problems among the mothers and the intergenerational transmission of imprisonment.
Methods: The study sample consisted of 881 imprisoned mothers who had participated in the
Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities (SISFCF). Through face-to-face
interviews, participants self-reported sociodemographic characteristics, incarceration histories,
mental health problems, and their child’s criminal justice involvement. Chapter 1 employed
group-based trajectory modeling to identify and characterize subgroups of mothers with different
incarceration histories. Chapter 2 then used logistic regressions to examine the associations
between the mother’s incarceration trajectories over the life course and mental health problems.
In Chapter 3, multivariate logistic regression was conducted to examine the associations between
maternal incarceration trajectories and the intergenerational transmission of imprisonment.
vi
Results: Chapter 1 revealed four groups of mothers with distinct incarceration trajectories: stably
escalating group, moderate declining group, adolescence-peak group, and young-adulthood-peak
group. Bivariate analyses suggested that the stably escalating group had a lower rate of sexual
abuse experience. The moderate declining group had a significantly fewer number of prison
confinements. Moreover, the adolescence-peak group had a higher prevalence of foster care
placement. Chapter 2 suggested that incarceration trajectories were significantly associated with
post-traumatic stress disorder diagnosis and demonstrated a trend toward significance to be
associated with anger symptoms and suicidal ideation. However, they were not significantly
associated with most other mental health problems, such as depressive disorder and anxiety
disorder. In Chapter 3, findings illustrated that children whose mothers followed the young-
adulthood-peak trajectory had higher odds of being incarcerated than children whose mothers
followed the moderate declining trajectory. Moreover, the mother’s experience of sexual abuse
and juvenile justice involvement were also significant predictors of the intergenerational
transmission of incarceration.
Conclusions and Implications: This study suggests the need to use comprehensive
incarceration measures to understand its direct and collateral consequences. It also discusses the
implications for mental health and criminal justice interventions that tailor to the unique
challenges encountered by subgroups of imprisoned mothers and their children.

Keywords: Incarceration trajectory; mother; prison; mental health; intergenerational
transmission of imprisonment
1
Chapter 1: Incarceration Trajectories of Women Who Are Mothers: A Nationally
Representative Study of State and Federal Prisoners
Introduction
The United States has the largest population of imprisoned adult women in the world
(The Sentencing Project, 2018; Walmsley, 2017). According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics,
most of these incarcerated women have children who were minors (Glaze & Maruschak, 2016;
Shlafer et al., 2019). Although research on women’s offending trajectories has proliferated, the
incarceration trajectories of women who are mothers remain underexplored. This knowledge gap
might compromise the effectiveness of criminal justice interventions targeting mothers involved
in the correctional system. Moreover, the lack of a comprehensive incarceration history measure
prohibits rigorous scientific research on the direct and collateral consequences of incarceration
experiences. This study used a nationwide survey dataset of state and federal prisoners to
identify and characterize mothers with different incarceration trajectories over the life course.
Since the 1970s, the US correctional population has experienced an unprecedented
increase (Travis et al., 2014). In 1972, less than 350,000 people were incarcerated compared to
more than 2.2 million people in 2014 (Alexander, 2010). Women represent the fastest-growing
population in the correctional system (Sawyer, 2018). Compared to an estimate of 350% increase
among men, the number of incarcerated women increased by nearly 800% in the past three
decades, from a total of 26,738 in 1980 to 225,060 in 2017 (The Sentencing Project, 2018).
Currently, more than one-third of all women incarcerated worldwide are imprisoned in the
United States (Walmsley, 2015), and more than half of these women are mothers of minor
children (Glaze & Maruschak, 2016; Shlafer et al., 2019). The rapid rise in the number of
incarcerated women is not a result of the “natural” fluctuations in crime rates (Uggen &
2
McElrath, 2014), but primarily due to more extensive law enforcement efforts, stiffer drug
sentencing laws, and post-conviction barriers to reentry that uniquely affect women (Brown &
Chesney-Lind, 2019; Sawyer, 2018; The Sentencing Project, 2018).
The unparalleled growth of female prisoners has led to growing research on their
offending trajectories, which allows for the creation of new theories of developmental
trajectories. The theories related to developmental trajectories emerged in the 1980s. This group
of theories emphasizes the importance of examining within-subject changes of offending career
over time, including the onset, the frequency, and the duration of incarceration (Blumstein,
1986). The theories predict that within the offenders’ population, there are distinctive subgroups
with distinctive etiologies that follow distinctive developmental trajectories of offenses (Chung
et al., 2002). Moreover, offenders who follow different trajectories may have varying levels of
risk for maladjustment problems in adulthood (Moffitt, 1993). The dual taxonomy theory by
Moffitt’s (1993) is the most empirically-tested developmental trajectory theory. It was initially
developed for male offenders but was applied subsequently to female offenders.
According to Moffitt (1993), there are two categories of female offenders: life-course-
persistent offenders and adolescence-limited offenders. The life-course-persistent offenders
report multiple risk factors in childhood, such as family adversity and coercive parental
discipline, have an early onset of minor offending and gradual involvement in more serious
crime over the life course and have poor adulthood outcomes in various domains. Although only
1% to 2% of women follow this trajectory (Fergusson & Horwood, 2002), they are responsible
for more than half of the offenses and the most devastating ones (Wolfgang, 1983). In contrast,
the adolescence-limited offenders report few risk factors in childhood, have a transient
expression of offending in adolescence due to peer influence and social mimicry and desist from
3
antisocial lifestyle as they transition to adulthood. Adolescence-limited offenders have fewer
adverse consequences in adulthood than life-course-persistent offenders (Moffitt et al., 2002;
Nagin et al., 1995). Approximately 15% to 30% of the incarcerated women follow this trajectory.
In addition to the life-course-persistent and adolescence-limited trajectories, there are
other offending trajectories identified in the literature. A recent systematic review of 46
international studies on women’s offending development summarized the existence of other
offending trajectories, including adolescence-delayed-onset trajectory, childhood-limited
trajectory, and adulthood-onset trajectory (Fontaine et al., 2009). Half of the studies included in
this review were conducted on women offenders in the United States (Fontaine et al., 2009). The
adolescence-delayed-onset female offenders have similar risk factors to their life-course-
persistent counterparts but with an onset of offending in adolescence. They manifest offending
and mental and physical health problems in adulthood (Silverthorn & Frick, 1999). Although
rarer than men, researchers have also identified the childhood-limited trajectory among women
(Aguilar et al., 2000; Odgers et al., 2008). Compared to their adolescence-limited counterparts,
childhood-limited female offenders appear to have fewer health problems in adulthood (Moffitt
et al., 2002; Odgers et al., 2008). Additionally, researchers have identified women who follow
the adulthood-onset trajectory. This group of women is hypothesized to have fewer childhood
risk factors (Chung et al., 2002). However, it is not clear whether they have maladjustment
problems in adulthood (Loeber & Stouthamer-Loeber, 1998; McGee & Farrington, 2010).
Although our knowledge of women’s offending trajectories has advanced significantly,
there is a lack of research on the potentially unique offending trajectories of women who are
mothers. Motherhood status is an essential factor related to women’s criminal behaviors (Arditti
& Few, 2008; Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2013). During the reentry process, women who are
4
mothers may face additional stress and stigma compared to their nonmother counterparts. For
instance, as needs related to their role as the primary caregivers of their children have rarely been
considered in reentry programs, released mothers often report a high level of maternal stress in
reuniting with their children (Arditti & Few, 2006). Moreover, because of the perceived
contradictions between criminality and maternal role expectations, women with children may be
labeled as “inadequate mothers” (Dodge & Pogrebin, 2001) and often more socially isolated and
receive less support from family and friends (Kielty, 2006).
Because of the additional stress and stigma, women who are mothers may have higher
recidivism rates and distinct incarceration trajectories compared to women who are not. If the
unique imprisonment histories are not identified and characterized, the effectiveness of criminal
justice interventions targeting mothers in the correctional system might be compromised.
Moreover, compelled by the lack of a comprehensive incarceration history measure, most studies
have used a dichotomized incarceration history measure (i.e., with or without an incarceration
history) to examine its consequences (Kirk & Wakefield, 2018; Wildeman & Turney, 2014).
This practice masks the heterogeneous incarceration trajectories among the imprisoned mothers
and potentially contributed to the contradictory findings documented in the literature about the
effects of imprisonment (Schnittker et al., 2012; Zhao et al., 2018, 2019).
This study used the Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities
(SISFCF) dataset collected in 2004 to identify and characterize subgroups of incarcerated
mothers that follow distinct incarceration trajectories. Guided by the developmental trajectory
theories, we developed two research hypotheses. First, there are subgroups of mothers in state
and federal prisons that follow distinct incarceration trajectories over the life course. Second,
imprisoned mothers with distinct incarceration trajectories differ in terms of sociodemographic
5
characteristics, family background, and incarceration experiences. To the best of our knowledge,
this is the first effort to understand the unique incarceration histories of women who are mothers.
It will lay the foundation for future research on the consequences of incarceration as it develops
the mother’s incarceration trajectories, a comprehensive and reliable measure of the mother’s
incarceration history. Further, through identifying and characterizing mothers with distinct
incarceration histories, the subgroups of mothers that are most embedded in the correctional
system will be better understood. Findings of this nature are essential for efficient resource
allocation and could translate to tailored criminal justice interventions to prevent continued
incarceration among this population.
Methods
Data and Sample
The SISFCF dataset provides a nationally representative sample of individuals in state
and federal correctional facilities (James & Glaze, 2006; Maruschak et al., 2015). Through
personal interviews conducted between October 2003 and May 2004, participants reported their
sociodemographic characteristics, family background, and incarceration experiences. The
SISFCF asked participants their total number of incarceration (for a maximum of 12 episodes)
and collected precise and comprehensive longitudinal incarceration history data retrospectively.
Specifically, regarding each incarceration episode, data were collected on the type of correctional
facilities sentenced to, type of offenses convicted, date of admission (month and year), age of
incarceration, duration of incarceration (days, months, and years), and how the participant was
sentenced.
As this study focuses on the incarceration trajectories of women who are mothers, we
excluded imprisoned women who do not have children, women with no previous incarceration
6
history, and women still waiting for a sentence for the current confinement. Imprisoned mothers
who do not have at least one complete incarceration history (including the date of admission and
the duration of incarceration) were excluded as well. The final study sample was consisted of
881 imprisoned mothers.
Measures
Months of Incarceration Per Year
The age of the participant at each incarceration was calculated using the participant’s age
at the time of the interview and the year of each incarceration. The length of each episode of
incarceration was assessed through three questions: “How much time did you actually serve in
the (facility) for (read above offenses)? (years).” “How much time did you actually serve in the
(facility) for (read above offenses)? (months).” and “How much time did you actually serve in
the (facility) for (read above offenses)? (days).” On the basis of answers to these three questions,
we derived the number of months the participant was incarcerated each time. Using the
participant’s age at each incarceration and the total number of months served each time, we
obtained the participant’s age at release. The number of months the participant had served per
year was then calculated, which is the primary outcome measure in this study.
Sociodemographic Characteristics
This study has incorporated important sociodemographic characteristics associated with
criminal justice involvement in the analysis. Specifically, the participant’s age, racial and ethnic
background, educational attainment, employment status, monthly income, living arrangement,
marital status, caregiving to children, and experiences of physical and sexual abuse were
included (Blanchette, 2002; Bloom & Covington, 2008; Byrne & Howells, 2002; Chesney-Lind
& Pasko, 2013; Loeber & Farrington, 2014; Messina et al., 2007; Sorbello et al., 2002).
7
Family Background
Participants also reported their family background, including prior involvement in the
foster care system, whether the guardian has ever received welfare or public assistance, whether
the participant has ever lived in public housing, the guardian’s substance use, and incarceration
histories of the participant’s parents, siblings, and partners.
Incarceration Experiences
Indicators of each imprisonment experience, including the type of correctional facilities,
type of offenses convicted, and number of times being sentenced as an adult, were included in
the analysis.
For each episode of incarceration, participants were asked about the type of correctional
facilities they were sentenced to using the following survey item: “What type of institution were
you sentenced to — a juvenile facility, local or county jail, state prison, other state facility, or
federal facility?” Four continuous variables were created to represent the total number of
confinements in jail, prison, juvenile facility, and other facilities, respectively.
Participants were also asked to name up to five offenses convicted in each incarceration.
Guided by the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ categorizing of offenses, five continuous variables
were created to represent the total number of violent offenses, property offenses, drug offenses,
public order offenses, and other offenses.
Moreover, participants were asked about how they were sentenced each time through the
following survey item: “For the (read above offenses), were you sentenced as an adult, a
youthful offender, or a juvenile?” If the participant was younger than 18 years and was sentenced
as an adult, then the participant was categorized as being sentenced as an adult. A continuous
variable was created to represent the number of times the participant was sentenced as an adult.
8
Analytical Procedure
Data analysis for this study preceded in two steps using the SAS 9.4 programming
language. First, semi-parametric group-based trajectory modeling was employed to identify
subgroups of mothers following distinct incarceration trajectories (Nagin & Nagin, 2005; Nagin,
1999) using the PROC TRAJ package (Jones et al., 2001). Instead of taking an exhaustive
approach to construct the model choice set, we used a more practical two-stage model selection
process (Nagin & Nagin, 2005). In the first stage, we focused on the choice of the number of
groups to be included in the model. After presetting all trajectory polynomial as cubic, an
increasingly larger number of groups was estimated. As the criminological literature has
suggested that the minimum number of groups is two and the maximum number is eight (Le
Blanc, 2002), we estimated the model with two groups to the model with eight groups. The
optimal number of groups was determined by the sample-dependent Bayesian Information
Criterion (BIC) scores, Akaike Information Criterion score, log-likelihood values, together with
the interpretability of the model (Nagin & Nagin, 2005).
Considering the first-stage decision on the number of groups, we focused on determining
the shape of each trajectory in the second stage. Because all trajectory polynomials were preset
as cubic (Jones et al., 2001), for non-significant cubic polynomials, the trajectory shape was
redefined using the significant polynomial (i.e., quadratic or linear). The procedure also assigned
participants a posterior probability of membership in each group. Participants were assigned to
the group that they had the highest-class probability. Because the preliminary observation of the
data suggests the minimum age of the first incarceration was 10 years and very rare participants
have incarceration history after the age of 53 years, the incarceration trajectories estimated in this
study ranged from age 10 to 53 years.
9
Second, we conducted ANOVA and Student–Newman–Keuls tests for continuous
variables and χ2 tests for categorical variables to characterize mothers with distinct incarceration
trajectories in terms of sociodemographic characteristics, family background, and incarceration
experiences. Unless otherwise indicated, the significance level (two-tailed) was set at p < .05.
Results
Group-Based Trajectory Modeling
The four-group model had the optimal model fit as is shown in Table 1.1. For either
sample, the BIC score rose steadily as the number of groups increased from two to four and then
declined. For N = 881, BIC was larger for the seven-group model than the four-group model, but
overall, the BIC after the four-group model represented a steady decline (Nagin & Nagin, 2005; Raftery,
1995; Schwarz, 1978). Another reason for the selection of the four-group model was that each trajectory
group maintained reasonable size and good interpretability.
The parameter estimates for the four-group trajectory model was presented in Table 1.2.
The actual and predicted trajectories for each estimated trajectory group are shown in Figure 1.1.
Group 1 was the stably escalating group (n = 33, 3.75%). It comprised participants who had been
incarcerated for an increasingly long period of time each year from childhood to adulthood. The
length of time incarcerated each year was measured in months. Group 2, the moderate declining
trajectory (n = 665, 75.48%), was the largest group. Participants in this group were incarcerated
for approximately half of the time each year from childhood to young adulthood. Their annual
length of incarceration decreased in middle adulthood. Groups 3 and 4 were bell-shaped
trajectories. Group 3 was the adolescence-peak trajectory (n = 109, 12.37%), and Group 4 was
the young-adulthood-peak trajectory (n = 74, 8.40%). Participants in Group 3 were incarcerated
for approximately 10 months a year in adolescence, then experienced a declined annual length of
10
incarceration afterward. Participants in Group 4 were incarcerated for short durations in
childhood. Their months of incarceration per year peaked in young adulthood and then steadily
declined.
Sociodemographic Characteristics
The mean age of the participants was 37.58 years (Table 1.3). There was a significant
difference in age among subgroups (F = 36.37, df = 3, p < .001). The stably escalating group had
an older average age (49.39 years) compared to the other groups. The young-adulthood-peak
group has a significantly older average age (42.00) compared to the moderate declining group
and the adolescence-peak group. There was a significant difference in the racial background (χ2
= 7.89, df = 3, p < .05), with significantly more Native Americans (12.84%) in the adolescence-
peak group and no Native Americans in the stably escalating group. Moreover, the stably
escalating group had a significantly lower prevalence of sexual abuse experience (19.35%) than
the other groups (with an average of 45.79%).
Family Background
A significant difference was noted in the participant’s involvement in the foster care
system (χ2 = 10.77, df = 3, p = .01) (Table 1.3). Specifically, a significantly greater percentage of
participants in the adolescence-peak group were exposed to the foster care system (25.24%) than
other groups (with an average of 10.47%).
Incarceration Experiences
Additionally, a significant difference was noted in the total number of episodes of prison
confinement among subgroups (F = 16.67, df = 3, p < .001) (Table 1.3). Specifically, the
moderate declining group had a significantly fewer number of prison confinements (2.95) than
other groups.
11
Discussion
Our findings support Moffitt’s (1993) main proposition about distinctive developmental
trajectories but suggest that a richer taxonomy may be necessary among imprisoned mothers.
Specifically, group-based trajectory modeling identified four groups of mothers with distinct
incarceration trajectories: stably escalating group, moderate declining group, adolescence-peak
group, and young-adulthood-peak group. This finding confirmed our first hypothesis that there
are subgroups of mothers in state and federal prisons that follow distinct incarceration
trajectories over the life course. Bivariate analyses found that the stably escalating group had a
lower rate of sexual abuse experience. The moderate declining group had a significantly fewer
number of prison confinements. Moreover, the adolescence-peak group had a higher prevalence
of foster care placement. These findings confirmed our second hypothesis that mothers with
distinct incarceration trajectories differ in terms of their background characteristics and
incarceration experiences.
The stably escalating group resembles the lifetime-persistent-offending group with the
incarceration history being persistent over the life course. Women in this group were more
embedded in the correctional system than those in the lifetime-persistent-offending group as they
experience prolonged periods of imprisonment each year as they age. Different from lifetime-
persistent offenders who had disadvantaged childhood experience and family background
(Moffitt, 1993), imprisoned mothers in the stably escalating group were less likely to be
minorities from marginalized socioeconomic backgrounds and less likely to experience traumatic
life events such as sexual abuse. These women may be more representative of those imprisoned
before this dramatic increase experienced the past four decades. According to the differential
stress exposure theory (Vanroelen et al., 2010), subgroups of individuals with less access to
12
resources and disproportionate exposure to stressors were more likely to have mental and
behavioral health problems, and consequently face considerable social difficulties such as
criminal justice involvement (Valdez et al., 2000). However, findings from this study suggest
that the subgroup of mothers that experienced less stressful life events was most embedded in the
criminal justice system. This counterintuitive finding could be attributed to the absence of
important criminogenic risk factors in the SISFCF dataset, such as the participants’ attachment to
significant others (e.g., parents, partners) and social network composition (Collica, 2010;
Wampler & Downs, 2010). Future primary data collection efforts that can comprehensively
capture the incarceration experiences and background characteristics among justice-involved
mothers are essential to understand the predictors of imprisonment trajectory.
The moderate declining group was similar to the adolescence-limited group (Moffitt,
1993), but its incarceration trajectory was extended to adulthood. The most distinct characteristic
of mothers in the moderate declining group than other groups was that they had a significantly
lower number of prison confinements. Compared to jail and other types of correctional facilities,
prison represents a different level of involvement in the correctional system in terms of the
length of sentence, distance to the aboriginal community, and type of conviction. Women being
sentenced to prisons usually have long sentences and are imprisoned far away from their
families, as there are far fewer prisons for women than for men (Wildeman et al., 2016).
Therefore, they may be less likely to maintain connections with network members such as
families and home-based friends (Christian, 2005; Worrall, 2010). Further, as mothers
incarcerated in prisons are more likely to have felony convictions, they are less likely to secure
stable employment and housing after release (Agan & Starr, 2017; Evans et al., 2019). Because
of these reasons, mothers with fewer number of episodes of prison confinement may be less
13
likely to experience severe and long-lasting collateral social reintegration consequences and,
therefore, less likely to recidivate. (Massoglia & Warner, 2011; Sabol et al., 2009). Considering
the potential role of prison confinement in altering the incarceration trajectories of women who
are mothers, criminal justice intervention should reconsider the conditions under which to
sentence mothers to prison and adopt routine use of diversion programs such as specialized
courts and community supervision.
Contributing to the developmental trajectory theories, a new incarceration trajectory
observed in this study was the adolescence-peak trajectory. This trajectory resembles the well-
known age–crime curve (Loeber & Farrington, 2014). Incarcerated mothers in this group had a
significantly higher prevalence of prior foster care placement than mothers in other groups. As
the peak of incarceration among this group was around 18 years, the age that most foster youth
being pushed out of the system (Shared Justice, 2017), there could be a potential association
between foster care placement and criminal justice involvement. Young women aged out of the
foster care system, especially those who have children, may be especially vulnerable to the
correctional system due to the lack of families to support them as they move into adulthood
(Jonson-Reid & Barth, 2000; Reilly, 2003). Research suggests that young women in foster care
are more than twice as likely as their peers not in foster care to become pregnant by age 19 years
(Heather, 2011). Their limited social and economic resources, as well as the challenges in
transitioning from adolescence to young adulthood, such as establishing intimate relationships
and secure employment, may contribute to criminal behavior. Research and interventions that
target the transitional needs of young women aging out of the foster care system are particularly
needed.
14
The findings of this research are subject to several limitations. First, the survey relied on
self-reports from incarcerated women who are mothers. Although all data collected are
deidentified, the participant might still have concerns about reporting previous incarceration
histories considering their legal status. Moreover, survey data are subject to recall bias.
Incarcerated mothers may have missed incarceration histories unintentionally at the time of the
interview. Second, the survey only documented the mothers’ incarceration trajectories for a
maximum of 12 episodes, including the current incarceration. For the small number of mothers
who have been incarcerated more than 12 times, the incarceration trajectory data will be
incomplete. Third, because the incarceration trajectories of imprisoned mothers were developed
based on the number of months that they were incarcerated each year, those trajectories do not
reflect other incarceration history characteristics such as the frequency of incarceration and the
duration of incarceration. Future research that investigates the incarceration histories of
imprisoned mothers from different perspectives is necessary. Fourth, women included in this
study were confined in state and federal prisons, which might be different from women with only
jail imprisonment histories. For this reason, caution is needed in generalizing incarceration
trajectories identified in this study to other imprisoned women populations. Last, the SISFCF
dataset was collected more than a decade ago, and there have been substantial social changes in
the past decade. Therefore, scholars should exercise caution while generating findings from this
research to incarcerated mothers as of date. However, the SISFCF dataset is the most current
nationally representative study of prisoners in state and federal facilities in the United States
Although a new wave of Survey of Prison Inmates data was collected in 2016, it is yet to be
available for public research.
15
Conclusions
Despite these limitations, this research provides a more nuanced understanding of the
incarceration experiences of women who are mothers. The development of fine-grained
comprehensive incarceration trajectories has laid the foundation for future social work research
to generate rigorous knowledge on the consequences of incarceration on not only the imprisoned
mothers but also their children. The existence of distinct incarceration trajectories and the unique
characteristics of mothers following different incarceration trajectories identified enable
expansion of the developmental trajectory theories and suggest that criminal justice practices
should be tailored to the unique needs and challenges encountered by mothers following
different imprisonment trajectories. Specifically, findings indicate that alternatives to prison
confinement and transitional services for young mothers aging out of the foster care system may
potentially contribute to effective criminal justice intervention for imprisoned women who are
mothers.

16
Table 1. 1. Using fit statistics to select the number of groups to include in the model
Number of
Groups

BIC
(N=3,103)
BIC
(N=881)
AIC L Probability
Correct Model
2 -6,276.66 -6,270.28 -6,246.37 -6,236.37 .00
3 -6,264.99 -6,255.42 -6,219.56 -6,204.56 .00
4 -6,236.99 -6,224.22 -6,176.41 -6,156.41 .00
5 -6,264.80 -6,248.84 -6,189.08 -6,164.08 .00
6 -6,244.25 -6,225.10 -6,153.38 -6,123.38 .00
7 -6,242.18 -6,219.85 -6,136.18 -6,101.18 .00
8 -6,255.17 -6,229.64 -6,134.02 -6,094.02 .00

17
Table 1. 2. Parameter estimates for the final trajectory model with four groups
Coefficient Estimate

Standard Error

Group 1: Stably Escalating Trajectory (n=33)

Intercept 11.93 *** 2.07
Linear 7.05 *** 1.69
Quadratic -1.34 1.72
Cubic -.91 .73

Group 2: Moderate Declining Trajectory (n=665)

Intercept 4.88 *** .54
Linear -.22 .71
Quadratic -.15 .64
Cubic -.92 * .38

Group 3: Adolescence-Peak Trajectory (n=109)

Intercept 21.40 *** 1.51
Linear 1.26 2.93
Quadratic -14.82 *** 2.11
Cubic -4.52 2.76

Group 4: Young-Adulthood-Peak Trajectory (n=74)

Intercept 4.15 * 1.99
Linear -1.25 14.24
Quadratic 121.83 *** 27.34
Cubic -88.36 *** 16.54
* p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001.

18
Table 1. 3. Sociodemographic characteristics, family background, and incarceration experiences among
incarcerated mothers with distinct incarceration trajectories, SISFCF 2004 (N=881)
Group 1:
Stably
Escalating
Trajectory
(n=33)
Group 2:
Moderate
Declining
Trajectory
(n=665)
Group 3:
Adolescenc
e-Peak
Trajectory
(n=109)
Group 4:
Young-
Adulthood
- Peak
Trajectory
(n=74)

Total

Sociodemographic Characteristics

Age *** 49.39 *** 36.63 36.71 42.00 *** 37.58
Racial/ethnic Background (%)
White Americans 57.58 55.94 50.46 56.76 55.39
African Americans 42.42 38.35 39.45 37.84 38.59
Hispanic and Latino Americans 18.18 15.34 16.67 14.86 15.57
Asian Americans .00 1.05 .00 .00 .79
Native Americans * .00 * 6.77 12.84 * 6.76 7.26
Pacific Islanders .00 .15 .00 .00 .11
Unknown* .00 .15 1.83 * .00 .34
High School Graduates (%) 54.55 39.88 32.11 44.59 39.86
Employed (%) 53.13 54.82 49.53 56.94 54.28
Monthly Income < $1,000 (%) 50.00 47.17 46.59 33.93 46.15
Stably Housed (%) 84.38 82.08 77.57 79.17 81.37
Married (%) 30.30 19.58 19.27 27.03 20.57
Supporting Child (%) 37.50 46.77 44.44 39.02 45.86
Physical Abuse (%) .50 1.44 1.53 1.76 1.44
Sexual Abuse (%) * 19.35 * 44.93 45.87 46.58 44.28

Family Background

Involved in the Foster Care System (%)
**
6.25 16.93 25.24 * 8.22 16.78
Received Welfare (%) 28.13 37.58 46.67 32.43 37.89
Received Public Housing (%) 15.15 18.81 16.51 17.81 18.30
Guardian Substance Dependence (%) 33.33 44.41 51.40 43.84 44.80
Parental Incarceration (%) 12.50 27.02 27.78 22.97 26.24
Incarceration of Mother 12.12 8.57 10.09 4.05 8.51
Incarceration of Father 9.09 22.11 19.27 18.92 21.00
Incarceration of Family Members (%) 53.12 53.81 60.55 68.92 55.91
Incarceration of Brother 33.33 38.95 46.79 51.35 40.75
Incarceration of Sister .00 .00 .00 .00 .00
Incarceration of Spouse 9.09 7.07 9.17 16.22 8.17
Incarceration of Boyfriend .00 61.86 45.83 75.00 59.62

Incarceration Experiences

Type of Facilities Incarcerated
Prisons *** 4.42 2.95 * 3.93 3.79 3.21
19
Jails 2.77 2.33 2.32 2.25 2.33
Juvenile Facilities 1.00 1.61 1.37 1.50 1.55
Other Facilities 1.00 1.38 1.67 3.50 1.50
Sentenced as an Adult 1.68 1.86 2.25 1.98 1.91
Type of Offenses Convicted
Property Offenses 2.36 1.87 2.18 1.84 1,93
Violent Offenses 1.10 1.45 1.33 1.54 1.43
Drug Offenses 1.95 1.70 1.85 1.75 1.74
Public Order Offenses 1.20 1.94 1.58 1.67 1.87
Other Offenses .00 1.13 1.00 1.00 1.08
* p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001.

20
Figure 1. 1. Retrospective histories of incarceration: Months of incarceration per year (N=881)

Group 1: Stably escalating incarceration trajectory (n=33, 3.75%)
Group 2: Moderate declining incarceration trajectory (n=665, 75.48%)
Group 3: Adolescence-peak incarceration trajectory (n=109, 12.37%)
Group 4: Young-adulthood-peak incarceration trajectory (n=74, 8.40%)

Months Incarcerated
21
Chapter 2: Incarceration Trajectories and Mental Health Problems Among Mothers
Imprisoned in State and Federal Correctional Facilities: A Nationwide Study
Introduction
The United States has the world’s largest population of imprisoned women (The
Sentencing Project, 2018; Walmsley, 2017), among whom most are mothers of minor children
(Glaze & Maruschak, 2016; Shlafer et al., 2019). Literature suggests that imprisoned mothers
have a significantly higher prevalence of mental health problems than others in the general
population and imprisoned women without children (Roxburgh & Fitch, 2014; Travis et al.,
2014). However, research on the etiology of their elevated mental health problems, especially the
role of incarceration history, has revealed contradictory findings (Travis et al., 2014; Turney &
Wildeman, 2015; Zhao et al., 2019). These inconsistencies are potentially attributable to the
different incarceration histories across samples that are masked by the use of a dichotomized
incarceration history measure (Kirk & Wakefield, 2018; Wildeman & Turney, 2014). In this
study, we will use incarceration trajectories to determine the nature and array of incarceration
experiences detrimental to the mental health of imprisoned mothers.
Incarceration is increasingly prevalent among women in the United States, particularly
women from disadvantaged minority communities (The Sentencing Project, 2018). Between
1980 and 2017, the incarceration rate for women has increased by more than 700%,
approximately twice that for men (The Sentencing Project, 2018). By 2017, the total population
of women confined in prisons and jails was 225,060 (Walmsley, 2017), which accounted for
more than one-third of all women incarcerated worldwide. The majority of these women, while
incarcerated, had children who were minors (Glaze & Maruschak, 2016; Shlafer et al., 2019).
22
Incarcerated women face a constellation of problems, most prominently a high
prevalence of mental health problems (James & Glaze, 2006). According to the Bureau of Justice
Statistics, nearly three-fourths of incarcerated women have mental health problems (James &
Glaze, 2006) compared with 55% of women in the general population (Hearn et al., 2015).
Incarcerated women who are mothers were reported to have more severe mental health problems
than their counterparts without children (Roxburgh & Fitch, 2014).
In the past two decades, research on the etiology of elevated mental health problems
among imprisoned women has proliferated. However, studies on the role of incarceration history
have generated contradictory findings. Some suggest that their poor mental health conditions are
attributable to the stress and stigma associated with incarceration (Travis et al., 2014; Turney &
Wildeman, 2015). Exposure to the criminal justice system may initiate new incidences of mental
health problems. Many aspects of the prison life—including material deprivations, restricted
movement and liberty, absence of meaningful activity, nearly total lack of personal privacy, high
levels of uncertainty and fear, overcrowding, and confinement in isolation units—expose
prisoners to potent psychological stressors. These stressors can adversely impact their emotional
and psychological well-being (Travis et al., 2014).
For women that enter the system with pre-existing mental health problems (James &
Glaze, 2006), exposure to incarceration may further exacerbate their health conditions
(Massoglia, 2008). Women with mental illnesses are more likely to incur disciplinary infractions
and suffer punishment than others (O’Keefe & Schnell, 2007). Mental health conditions also
make them possible targets of sexual abuse by staff during confinement (Beck et al., 2013; Blitz
et al., 2008). Further, because women’s prisons have been historically underserved, women with
mental health problems usually have even less access to treatment than their male counterparts,
23
though many imprisoned men already receive little mental health services (Smykla & Williams,
1996; Ono, 2015). The strain on staffing and facilities also has severe repercussions for wait time
and holding conditions for the mentally ill, which may consequently aggravate their existing
mental health problems.
Incarceration may be more detrimental to women who are mothers because of their acute
feeling of the loss of familial roles and affectional relationships than women without children
(Kasebaum, 2017). Mothers under confinement often need to grapple with the burden of being
separated from their children (Arditti & Few, 2006; Travis et al., 2014). Thoits (1995) suggests
that “the meaning or significance of stressors depends on the salience to the individual of the
role-identity domain in which they occur” (p. 59). Maternal identity is a central self-conception
among many women (Berry & Eigenberg, 2003). Because they are unable to fulfill the expected
maternal role during incarceration, internal conflicts may arise and lead to mental health
problems (Kielty, 2006).
In contrast to studies that suggest a positive association between imprisonment history
and mental health problems, there is also research that indicates that incarceration is not a
significant predictor of mental health problems or contributes to only certain disorders (i.e.,
major depressive disorders and dysthymia; Schnittker et al., 2012; Zhao et al., 2019). Mothers in
the correctional system are disproportionately undereducated and underemployed racial and
ethnic minorities (Western & Wildeman, 2009). Research suggests that minorities with
disadvantaged socioeconomic status usually have inadequate access to healthcare,
disproportionate exposure to stressful living arrangements and economic strain (Bloom &
Covington, 2008; Boardman & Alexander, 2011; Lindquist & Lindquist, 1997; Messina et al.,
2007), and extensive experiences of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse (Covington & Bloom,
24
2007; Felitti et al., 1998; Messina & Grella, 2006). For these reasons, the effects of pre-
incarceration disadvantages on the mother’s mental health may outsize the stress and stigma
originating from incarceration (Schnittker et al., 2012).
The conflicting findings regarding the role of incarceration on mental health might occur
due to differences in imprisonment experiences captured across samples. According to the
developmental trajectory theories (Blumstein, 1986; Chung et al., 2002), within the offenders’
population, there are subgroups with distinct etiologies that follow different developmental
trajectories of offending. Individuals with distinct offending trajectories may have different
levels of risk for maladjustment problems in late life, such as mental health problems (Zhao et
al., 2020). According to the differential stress exposure theory, the unequal distribution of
resources and stressful life events such as criminal justice involvement is potentially the
explanatory factors for different levels of risk for mental health problems among subgroups
(Dohrenwend, 1973; Vanroelen et al., 2010).
To date, most studies on the effects of incarceration have treated imprisonment history as
a dichotomous event (Kirk & Wakefield, 2018), which masks the heterogeneous incarceration
histories among subgroups and their distinct mental health consequences. Only a few studies
have used more specific incarceration history measures to investigate the type of imprisonment
histories detrimental to mental health. For instance, the duration of incarceration was found to
have a positive or null association with the likelihood of having a depressive disorder among
men (Schnittker & John, 2007). In another study, the timing, duration, and frequency of
incarceration were found to be not significantly associated with released women’s depressive
symptoms (Zhao et al., 2019). Moreover, an Australia study demonstrated that people who had
been continuously imprisoned for 5 years had a lower depression score than those who had been
25
released and reincarcerated within the same time frame (Dunbar et al., 2003). No study,
however, has examined the mental health consequences of imprisonment using comprehensive
trajectories that capture interindividual changes over the life course and the interindividual
differences between subgroups.
Guided by the developmental trajectory theories (Blumstein, 1986; Chung et al., 2002)
and the differential stress exposure theory (Dohrenwend, 1973), this study examined the
associations between incarceration trajectories and mental health problems among imprisoned
mothers. Specifically, we hypothesized that different incarceration trajectories would be
associated with different levels of risk for mental health problems among mothers imprisoned in
state and federal correctional facilities. This study generates a nuanced understanding of the type
of incarceration history associated with adverse mental health outcomes and the subgroups of
mothers most severely impacted by incarceration. This knowledge is essential for efficient
intervention development and resource allocation to alleviate mental health disparities endured
by imprisoned mothers, especially those from the most marginalized sectors of US society.
Methods
Study Design and Sampling
This study used the SISFCF 2004 for analysis. Collected periodically from 1974 to 2004,
the SISFCF survey provides a nationally representative sample of women in state and federal
prisons. This survey was implemented again in 2016, renamed the Survey of Prison Inmates
(SPI). However, because the SPI is not yet available for public use, the SISFCF 2004 is the most
current national data on women prisoners.
The SISFCF used a stratified two-stage sample design. The first stage selected facilities
to be included, and the second stage chose individuals to be interviewed. The state prison sample
26
was chosen from a total of 1,585 facilities enumerated in the 2000 Census of State and Federal
Correctional Facilities or opened between the completion of the Census and April 1, 2003. The
federal prison sample was selected from 148 federal prisons and satellite facilities holding
individuals in January 2003. In total, 14,499 individuals in 287 state prisons and 3,686
individuals in 39 federal prisons were interviewed (James & Glaze, 2006; Maruschak, 2008).
Through face-to-face interviews, participants reported their sociodemographic
characteristics, incarceration histories, and mental health problems. Although the SISFCF is a
cross-sectional survey, it collected retrospective longitudinal data on the participants’
incarceration history. This included their total episodes of incarceration (up to a maximum of 12
episodes), date of admission (month and year), age at imprisonment, and the duration of
incarceration (days, months, and years). These data allowed for the development of incarceration
trajectories over time (Zhao et al., 2020).
Because the predicting variables in this study are the imprisoned mothers’ incarceration
trajectories, we excluded incarcerated women who do not have children. In addition, those with
no previous incarceration history and were still waiting for a sentence for the current
confinement and those who did not have at least one complete incarceration history data
(including the date of admission and the duration of confinement) were excluded. The final study
sample comprised 881 incarcerated mothers with at least one complete incarceration history data.
Measures
Sociodemographic Characteristics
According to the literature, there are important sociodemographic characteristics related
to criminal justice involvement, including the participants’ age, racial and ethnic background,
educational attainment, employment status, living arrangement, marital status, foster care
27
involvement, and prior experiences of physical and sexual abuse (Blanchette, 2002; Bloom &
Covington, 2008; Byrne & Howells, 2002; Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2013; Loeber & Farrington,
2014; Messina et al., 2007; Sorbello et al., 2002). This study incorporated these factors into the
analysis.
Incarceration Trajectories
In a recent working paper utilizing the SISFCF dataset, the authors identified four groups
of imprisoned mothers with distinct incarceration trajectories using the length of time (in
months) incarcerated per year (Zhao et al., 2020). The actual and predicted trajectories for each
estimated group are presented in Figure 2.1. Group 1 was the stably escalating group (n = 33,
3.75%) whose members had experienced an increasingly longer period of imprisonment each
year from childhood to adulthood. Group 2, the moderate declining trajectory (n = 665, 75.48%),
was the largest group whose members were incarcerated for approximately half of the time each
year from childhood to middle adulthood. They only experienced a decrease in the annual length
of incarceration after middle adulthood. Group 3 was the adolescence-peak trajectory group (n =
109, 12.37%), and Group 4 was the young-adulthood-peak trajectory group (n = 74, 8.40%).
Members in Group 3 were incarcerated for approximately 10 months yearly since late childhood.
Their annual length of incarceration peaked in adolescence then declined in young adulthood.
Members in Group 4 experienced limited periods of incarceration annually in childhood. Their
months of incarceration per year peaked in young adulthood steadily decreasing thereafter. The
incarceration trajectory memberships are the predicting variables in this study.
Mental Health Problems
History or symptoms of mental health problems are the outcome variables in this study.
The SISFCF assessed self-reported mental illnesses, including any prior diagnoses of depressive
28
disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety or panic
disorder, personality disorder, or other mental conditions (Wilper et al., 2009). Dichotomized
variables were created to represent the existence of each type of mental health diagnosis.
The SISFCF also designed symptom-specific questions to reflect prisoners’ mental health
problems (Schnittker & Bacak, 2016). Measures of mental health symptoms were adapted from
the DSM-IV Structural Clinical Interview, which emulates how a clinician makes a diagnosis
(First et al., 1997; Guze, 1995). Participants were asked whether they have experienced a variety
of symptoms in the past year. On the basis of answers to these questions, discrete presence or
absence symptom variables were created.
Specifically, any feeling of sadness was indicated by “feeling numb or empty inside,
giving up hope for your life or your future, or feeling like no one cared about you.” Any
psychomotor agitation or retardation was indicated by “feeling like you talked or moved more
slowly than usual, had periods when you could not sit still, times your thoughts raced so fast that
you had trouble keeping track of them, or an increase or decrease in your overall activity
compared with your usual level of functioning.” Any delusion or hallucinations was indicated by
“feeling that other people could read your mind, that things do not seem real like you are in a
dream, that other people can control your brain or your thoughts, seeing things other people say
are not there, hearing voices other people could not hear, or feeling that anyone other than
correction staff has been spying on you or plotting against you.” Any anger was indicated by
“losing your temper easily, being angry more than usual, hurting or breaking things on purpose,
or thinking a lot about getting back at someone you have been angry at.” This categorization of
mental health symptoms had been used in previous studies using the SISFCF dataset (James &
Glaze, 2006).
29
In addition to mental health diagnoses and symptoms, the SISFCF collected data on the
participant’s suicidal ideation and attempt since the most recent admission to prison.
Specifically, participants were asked, “Have you ever considered suicide?” and “Have you ever
attempted suicide?” On the basis of their response, two dichotomized variables were created to
reflect the participant’s suicidal ideation and attempt, respectively.
Analytical Procedure
Data analysis was performed in four steps using the SAS 9.4 programming language.
First, frequency distributions of categorical variables and measures of central tendency of
continuous variables were examined to reflect the sociodemographic characteristics and mental
health of incarcerated mothers. Second, to characterize subgroups of mothers with distinct
incarceration trajectories, ANOVA and Student–Newman–Keuls tests (for continuous variables)
and chi-square tests (for categorical variables) were conducted. Third, to select variables to be
included in the multivariate logistic regression model, predicting variables (including control
variables) were subjected to bivariate logistic analysis with mental health dependent variables.
Only predictors that have a p value of < .25 were retained for the multivariate logistic regression
model. Finally, to examine the associations between the mothers’ incarceration trajectories and
mental health problems, multiple multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted.
Unless otherwise indicated, the significance level (two-tailed) was set at p < .05.
Results
Descriptive Statistics
The characteristics of participants in this study are detailed in Table 2.1. The average age
of the participants was 37.57 years. Most of them were European Americans (55.39%), followed
by African Americans (38.59%) and Latino Americans (15.55%). Participants had relatively low
30
educational attainment. Only approximately 40% of them were graduated from high school.
Before incarceration, more than half of them were employed, about 80% had stable housing, and
the majority of the participants were not married (79%). Additionally, foster care involvement
(16.23%), physical abuse (22.70%), and sexual abuse (43.93%) were prevalent among
imprisoned mothers.
Mental health problems were common among imprisoned mothers. Depressive disorder
was reported by approximately 40% of the participants, followed by bipolar disorder (27.45%),
anxiety or panic disorder (19.09%), and PTSD (14%). In terms of mental health symptoms, 58%
reported sadness symptoms, 66% reported psychomotor agitation or retardation symptoms, 44%
reported delusion or hallucination symptoms, and 51% reported anger symptoms. Attempted
suicide in the past year was reported by 30% of the participants, and 10% of the participants had
suicidal ideation.
Comparative Statistics
The characteristics of imprisoned mothers following different incarceration trajectories
was presented in Table 2.2. ANOVA and Student–Newman–Keuls tests and chi-square tests
suggested significant group differences in age (F = 36.37, df = 3, p < .001), racial and ethnic
background (χ2 = 7.89, df = 3, p < .05), foster care involvement (χ2 = 10.77, df = 3, p = .01),
experience of sexual abuse (χ2 = 9.32, df = 3, p = .03), and anger symptoms (χ2 = 9.14, df = 3, p
= .03). Specifically, the stably escalating group was significantly older (49.39) than other groups,
had a lower percentage of Native Americans, and had a lower prevalence of foster care
placement (6.06%) and sexual abuse experience (19.35%). The adolescence-peak group had a
significantly higher percentage of Native Americans (12.84%) and a higher prevalence of foster
care placement (23.85%) than other groups.
31
Logistic Regression Analyses
Findings from bivariate logistic regression analyses were presented in Table 2.3. Only
models that demonstrate significant associations between incarceration trajectories and mental
health problems were included. The anger symptom model was not significant in the bivariate
logistic regression but was still included in Table 2.3 because it demonstrated a trend towards
significance in the multivariate logistic regression.
Findings of multivariate logistic regressions on the significant associations between
incarceration trajectories and mental health problems, after controlling for sociodemographic
characteristics, are detailed in Table 2.4. Specifically, multivariate logistic regression suggested
that incarceration trajectories had a trend toward significance (p = .10) in predicting anger
symptoms. Imprisoned women following the young-adulthood-peak incarceration trajectory
(Group 4) as opposed to those following the moderate declining incarceration trajectory (Group
2) had higher odds of anger symptoms (OR = 1.81, 95% CI = .89–3.67).
Incarceration trajectory was also a significant predictor for PTSD diagnosis. Imprisoned
mothers following the young-adulthood-peak trajectory (Group 4) had 19.87 the odds as mothers
following the stably escalating trajectory (Group 1) to have PTSD diagnosis (95% CI = 1.59–
248.30), and demonstrated a trend towards significance (p = .06) to have higher odds of PTSD
diagnosis as opposed to mothers following the adolescence-peak trajectory (Group 3; OR = 3.47,
95% CI = .96–12.52). Similarly, imprisoned women following the moderate declining trajectory
(Group 2) had 13.09 the odds as incarcerated women following the stably escalating trajectory
(Group 1) to have PTSD diagnosis (95% CI = 1.09–156.90), and had a trend towards
significance to have higher odds of PTSD diagnosis as opposed to the adolescence-peak
trajectory (Group 3; OR = 2.29, 95% CI = .85–6.17).
32
Furthermore, in the suicidal ideation multivariate logistic regression model, incarceration
trajectories demonstrated a trend toward significance (p = .07) in predicting suicidal ideation
among imprisoned mothers. Specifically, imprisoned mothers following the young-adulthood-
peak trajectory (Group 4) had a trend towards significance to have higher odds of suicidal
ideation than those following the adolescence-peak incarceration trajectory (Group 3; OR=3.92,
95% CI = .91–16.80).
Discussion
This study used a comprehensive incarceration history measure over the life course to
investigate the associations between confinement histories and mental health problems among
imprisoned mothers. Findings partially confirmed our research hypothesis that, for specific
mental health problems, imprisoned mothers with different incarceration trajectories had distinct
risks. However, incarceration trajectories were not significantly associated with the majority of
the mental health problems investigated in this study, including mental health symptoms (i.e.,
sadness, psychomotor agitation or retardation, and delusion or hallucination), mental health
diagnoses (i.e., depression disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety or panic disorder,
personality disorder, and other disorders), and suicidal attempt.
Consistent with the literature on the association between the characteristics of criminal
justice involvement and mental health outcomes (Dunbar et al., 2003; Schnittker & John, 2007),
this study found that imprisoned mothers with particular incarceration histories are at a higher
risk for specific mental health problems. In other words, there are incarceration histories more
detrimental than others to women’s mental health. After controlling for sociodemographic
factors and experiences of physical and sexual abuse, incarceration trajectories were significantly
associated with PTSD diagnosis and demonstrated a trend toward significance to be associated
33
with anger symptoms and suicidal ideation among imprisoned mothers. These significant
associations suggest the necessity for mental health interventions to customize to the needs of
mothers following different incarceration trajectories, especially subgroups that are most
severely impacted by incarceration.
Findings specifically suggest that imprisoned mothers following the young-adulthood-
peak trajectory (Group 4) had higher odds of PTSD diagnosis and demonstrated a trend toward
significance to have higher odds of anger symptoms and suicidal ideation. These findings can
potentially be explained by the unique characteristics of this incarceration trajectory compared to
other trajectories. Mothers following the young-adulthood-peak trajectory had experienced
prolonged and possibly repeated criminal justice involvement from age 18 to 38 years.
According to Erikson’s (1964) stages of human development, this age range coincides with
young adulthood, a stage when individuals are ready for intimacy and to commit to concrete
affiliations and partnerships (Erikson, 1964). Moreover, young adulthood is filled with avid
quests for other significant commitments involving career and life goals (Zastrow & Kirst-
Ashman, 2009). However, research has suggested that criminal justice involvement, especially
prolonged and frequent incarceration, has long-lasting detrimental effects on intimate
relationships and marriages (Huebner, 2005; Massoglia et al., 2011), social network composition
(Kriegel et al., 2015; Zhao et al., 2018), employment prospect (Huebner, 2005), and stable
housing (Metraux et al., 2007). Difficulties in completing the tasks in young adulthood and
settling down may lead to frustration, anger, and problematic intimate relationships (Levinson,
1986). To prevent or interrupt serial incarcerations in young adulthood and contribute to positive
mental health outcomes among imprisoned mothers, social work programs targeting the needs of
successful development in young adulthood are needed. Moreover, future research on mental
34
health consequences of incarceration in specific life-course developmental stages is essential for
the development of effective mental health interventions.
Findings also indicate that mothers following the moderate declining incarceration
trajectory (Group 2) had higher odds of PTSD diagnosis than those following the stably
escalating incarceration trajectory (Group 1). Although the stably escalating incarceration
trajectory represents a more embedded criminal justice involvement history than the moderate
declining trajectory, women in this group had more advantageous socioeconomic status (e.g.,
racial and ethnic background, foster care involvement). According to the differential exposure
theory (Dohrenwend, 1973; Vanroelen et al., 2010), persons of low social status are
disproportionately exposed to stressful life events and have fewer resources. The divergent
mental health outcomes between these two subgroups are potentially attributable to the
differences in their socioeconomic status and related stressful life experiences. To alleviate
mental health disparities among imprisoned mothers, interventions that tackle economic
inequalities are potentially effective. Moreover, criminal justice resource allocation to the more
socioeconomically disadvantaged populations is needed.
It is essential to highlight that, consistent with research that suggests null associations
between incarceration histories and mental health outcomes (Schnittker et al., 2012; Zhao et al.,
2019), we found that incarceration trajectories were not significantly associated with most
mental health conditions among imprisoned mothers. Although incarceration is increasingly
prevalent among US women, it remains an uncommon life experience as women only comprise
less than 10% of the prison and jail population (Marcus-Mendoza, 2015). Moreover, despite
heterogeneities in the imprisoned mothers population, incarceration is especially prevalent
among the most disadvantaged groups with extensive histories of trauma and abuse (Covington
35
& Bloom, 2007). For these reasons, women with any incarceration history may generally
experience a high level of stigma and stress and report more mental health problems regardless
of the characteristics of incarceration trajectories. This interpretation is consistent with the
stigma and stress perspective (Schnittker & John, 2007).
This study is subject to several limitations. First, although the SISFCF 2004 dataset
remains the most recent nationally representative study of prisoners in state and federal
correctional facilities in the United States, it was collected more than a decade ago, and there
have been substantial social changes in the past decade. Therefore, scholars should be cautious in
generating findings from this research to incarcerated mothers presently. Second, because of the
nature of secondary data analysis, the experience of traumatic life events other than physical and
sexual abuse was not included in the PTSD regression model. Future research that incorporates
comprehensive life experiences related to mental health problems is needed. Third, although the
ordering between incarceration trajectories and mental health symptoms was explicit, its
temporal relationship with mental health diagnoses was not clear, which prohibits the
establishment of causal inferences. Future longitudinal research with explicit sequential ordering
data is needed to understand the associations between incarceration trajectories and mental health
problems. Last, because participants investigated in this study were prisoners in state and federal
facilities, they could have different experiences compared to women only exposed to the jail
system. Therefore, caution is needed in generalizing findings from this study to other women
correctional populations.
Conclusions
Despite these limitations, our study provides a nuanced understanding of the associations
between incarceration trajectories and mental health problems among imprisoned mothers. It also
36
serves as an example for future social work research to use comprehensive incarceration history
measures, instead of an oversimplified dichotomized measure, to examine its direct and collateral
consequences. Findings suggest that incarceration trajectories were associated with PTSD
diagnosis, anger symptoms, and suicidal ideation, but was not significantly related to the
majority of other mental health diagnoses and symptoms. Because certain incarceration
trajectories were associated with a higher level of risk for specific mental health problems,
challenges stemmed from distinct incarceration histories should be incorporated into mental
health intervention to tailor to the needs of mothers most severely impacted by incarceration.
Moreover, social work interventions that tackle economic inequalities may also alleviate the
mental health disparities endured by imprisoned mothers.

37
Table 2. 1. Sociodemographic characteristics and mental health problems among mothers imprisoned in
state and federal correctional facilities, SISFCF 2004 (N=881)
Variables

N (%) Mean SD
Sociodemographic Characteristics
Age 37.57 8.32
Racial and Ethnic Background (%)1
European American 488 (55.39) 488
African American 340 (38.59) 340
Latino American 137 (15.55) 137
Indian American 64 (7.26) 64
Asian American 7 (.79) 7
Pacific Islander 1 (.11) 1
Unknown 3 (.34) 3
High School Graduate (%) 350 (39.77) 350
Employed (%) 469 (53.23) 469
Married (%) 181 (20.57) 181
Stably Housed (%) 703 (79.80) 703
Foster Care Involvement (%) 143 (16.23) 143
Experience of Physical Abuse (%) 200 (22.70) 200
Experience of Sexual Abuse (%) 387 (43.93) 387
Mental Health Symptoms (%)
Sadness 510 (57.89) 510
Psychomotor Agitation or Retardation 585 (66.40) 585
Delusion or Hallucination 390 (44.27) 390
Anger 449 (50.96) 449
Mental Health Diagnoses (%)
Depressive Disorder 352 (39.95) 352
Bipolar Disorder 241 (27.45) 241
Schizophrenia 61 (6.94) 61
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder 124 (14.12) 124
Anxiety or Panic Disorder 168 (19.09) 168
Personality Disorder 102 (11.60) 102
Other Mental Health Disorders 29 (3.30) 29
Suicidal Ideation and Attempt (%)
Suicidal Ideation 84 (9.53) 84
Suicidal Attempt 266 (30.19) 266

1 Because there are people who reported more than one race and ethnicity, the sum of all racial and ethnic groups
had exceeded 100%.
38
Table 2. 2. Sociodemographic characteristics and mental health problems among mothers with distinct
incarceration trajectories, SISFCF 2004 (N=881)
Group1:
Stably
Escalating
(n=33)
Group 2:
Moderate
Declining
(n=665)

Group 3:
Adolescence
-Peak
(n=109)
Group 4:
Young-
Adulthood
Peak (n=74)
Sociodemographic Characteristics
Age *** 49.39 *** 36.63 36.71 42.00 ***
Racial and Ethnic Background (%)
European American 57.58 55.94 50.46 56.76
African American 42.42 38.35 39.45 37.84
Latino American 18.18 15.34 16.67 14.86
Native American * .00 6.77 12.84 6.76
Asian American .00 1.05 .00 .00
Pacific Islander .00 .15 .00 .00
Unknown * .00 .15 1.83* .00
High School Graduate (%) + 54.55 39.88 32.11 44.59
Employed (%) 53.13 54.82 49.53 56.94
Married (%) 30.30 19.58 19.27 27.03
Stably Housed (%) 84.38 82.08 77.57 79.17
Foster Care Involvement (%) * 6.06 16.39 23.85 8.11
Experience of Physical Abuse (%) 18.18 22.11 23.85 28.38
Experience of Sexual Abuse (%) * 19.35 44.93 45.87 46.58

Mental Health Symptoms (%)

Sadness 39.39 58.95 60.55 52.70
Psychomotor Agitation or Retardation 57.58 67.22 65.14 64.86
Delusion or Hallucination 27.27 45.26 44.04 43.24
Anger * 27.27 50.83 55.05 56.76

Mental Health Diagnoses (%)

Depressive Disorder 33.33 40.63 41.67 36.99
Bipolar Disorder 18.18 28.64 28.97 20.55
Schizophrenia 9.09 6.52 11.11 4.11
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder 3.03 14.72 11.11 19.18
Anxiety or Panic Disorder 9.09 19.97 16.67 20.55
Personality Disorder 3.03 11.82 12.96 12.33
Other Mental Health Disorders 3.03 3.95 .00 2.74

Suicidal Ideation and Attempt (%)

Suicidal Ideation 11.54 13.44 13.51 18.18
Suicidal Attempt 21.21 31.27 31.48 24.66
+ p < .10, * p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001.

39
Table 2. 3. Bivariate statistics: Incarceration trajectories, sociodemographic characteristics, and mental
health problems among mothers in state and federal prisons, SISFCF 2004 (N=881)
Anger

OR 95% CI
Incarceration Trajectories
Group 1: Stably Escalating Group .58 [.24-1.40]
Group 2: Moderate Declining Group .97 [.62-1.53]
Group 3: Adolescence-Peak Group 1.08 [.59-1.98]
Group 4: Young-Adulthood-Peak Group 1.32 [.68-2.55]

Sociodemographic Characteristics

Age *** .96 [.95-.98]
European American .81 [.62-1.05]
Native American + 1.66 [.98-2.81]
Asian American + 5.83 [.70-48.64]
High School Graduate .62 [.63-1.08]
Foster Care Involvement *** 2.23 [1.53-3.25]
Experience of Physical Abuse * 1.44 [1.05-1.98]
Experience of Sexual Abuse *** 1.77 [1.35-2.32]
Bipolar

OR 95% CI
Incarceration Trajectories
Group 1: Stably Escalating Group .83 [.31-2.26]
Group 2: Moderate Declining Group 1.48 [.88-2.48]
Group 3: Adolescence-Peak Group .97 [.49-1.91]
Group 4: Young-Adulthood-Peak Group + .47 [.20-1.08]

Sociodemographic Characteristics

Age *** .96 [.95-.98]
European American * 1.40 [1.03-1.89]
African American ** .64 [.47-.88]
Latino American .71 [.46-1.10]
Married .79 [.54-1.15]
High School Graduate .82 [.61-1.12]
Employed + .78 [.58-1.05]
Foster Care Involvement *** 2.33 [1.60-3.38]
Experience of Sexual Abuse *** 2.12 [1.57-2.86]
PTSD

OR 95% CI
Incarceration Trajectories
Group 1: Stably Escalating Group * .08 [.01-0.70]
Group 2: Moderate Declining Group 1.55 [.79-3.05]
Group 3: Adolescence-Peak Group .56 [.22-1.45]
Group 4: Young-Adulthood-Peak Group 1.72 [.73-4.02]

40
Sociodemographic Characteristics
African American + .69 [.46-1.04]
Latino American * .54 [.29-1.01]
High School Graduate * 1.51 [1.03-2.21]
Foster Care Involvement * 1.75 [1.10-2.77]
Experience of Physical Abuse + .62 [.37-1.03]
Experience of Sexual Abuse *** 3.76 [2.49-5.69]
Suicidal Ideation

OR 95% CI
Incarceration Trajectories
Group 1: Stably Escalating Group 1.19 [.29-4.92]
Group 2: Moderate Declining Group .88 [.41-.86]
Group 3: Adolescence-Peak Group .48 [.15-1.53]
Group 4: Young-Adulthood-Peak Group + 2.23 [.87-5.72]

Sociodemographic Characteristics

Experience of Sexual Abuse *** 2.37 [1.49-3.77]
+ p < .10, * p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001. Bivariate results without controlling other indicators.

41
Table 2. 4. Multivariate statistics: Incarceration trajectories and mental health problems among mothers in
state and federal prisons, SISFCF 2004 (N=881)
Anger

PTSD
(ref: Group 1)

PTSD
(ref: Group 3)
Suicidal
Ideation
OR 95% CI OR 95% CI OR 95% CI OR 95% CI
Incarceration
Trajectories

Group 1:
Stably
Escalating
1.20 .45-3.20 . . .18 .02-2.07 2.99 .54-16.44
Group 2:
Moderate
Declining
. . 13.09* 1.09-156.90 2.29+ .85-6.17 1.78 .54-5.84
Group 3:
Adolescence
-Peak
1.09 .57-2.09 5.73 .48-67.76 . . . .
Group 4:
Young-Adulthood
-Peak
1.81+ .89-3.67 19.87* 1.59-248.30 3.47+ .96-12.52 3.92+ .91-16.80
+ p < .10, * p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001. Results after controlling all the indicators.
There are two PTSD multivariate logistic regression results in the Table with different reference groups.
The OR and 95% CI for the reference group in each model are indicated as “.”.

42
Figure 2. 1. Retrospective histories of incarceration: Months of incarceration per year (N=881)

Group 1: Stably escalating incarceration trajectory (n=33, 3.75%)
Group 2: Moderate declining incarceration trajectory (n=665, 75.48%)
Group 3: Adolescence-peak incarceration trajectory (n=109, 12.37%)
Group 4: Young-adulthood-peak incarceration trajectory (n=74, 8.40%)

Months Incarcerated
43
Chapter 3: Maternal Incarceration Trajectories and the Intergenerational Transmission of
Imprisonment: A Nationwide Study
Introduction
Maternal incarceration experiences are prevalent among children in the United States,
especially those from disadvantaged racial and ethnic minority communities (Arditti, 2015;
Wakefield & Wildeman, 2018; Wildeman, 2009). Literature suggests that children with maternal
incarceration experiences have a substantially elevated risk of criminal justice involvement
compared with children without maternal incarceration experiences (Farrington & Welsh, 2012;
Giordano, 2010; Murray et al., 2012). However, studies on the etiology of the intergenerational
transmission of imprisonment, especially the role of maternal incarceration, has revealed
contradictory findings (Cho, 2010; Giordano & Copp, 2015; Turney & Wildeman, 2015). These
inconsistencies are potentially attributable to the use of an oversimplified dichotomized maternal
incarceration history measure in most studies that masks different maternal imprisonment
experiences across samples (Kirk & Wakefield, 2018; Turney & Wildeman, 2015). This study
used maternal incarceration trajectories over the life course to determine the nature and array of
maternal confinement histories associated with the intergenerational transmission of
imprisonment.
Women represent the fastest-growing population in the correctional system (Arditti &
Few, 2006). Compared with a 350% increase in the number of incarcerated men, the number of
incarcerated women has increased more than 700% in the past three decades, rising from 26,378
in 1980 to 225,060 in 2017 (Carson, 2015; The Sentencing Project, 2018). Because most
imprisoned women are mothers with an average of two to three children (Glaze & Maruschak,
2016; Shlafer et al., 2019), more than one million American children have experienced maternal
44
incarceration (Arditti, 2015). Research suggests that maternal incarceration is unequally
distributed and often occurs among the most marginalized segments of the US society
(Wakefield & Wildeman, 2018). For instance, African American children were reported to be 5
times more likely to experience maternal incarceration than European American children
(Wildeman, 2009).
Children with maternal incarceration experiences have higher rates of internalizing (e.g.,
depression) and externalizing (e.g., school failure; Lee et al., 2013; Uggen & McElrath, 2014)
problems, particularly considerably elevated risk of criminal justice involvement compared to
children without maternal incarceration experiences (Farrington & Welsh, 2012; Giordano, 2010;
Murray et al., 2012). One statistic indicates that children of incarcerated parents are, on average,
6 times more likely to become incarcerated themselves (Cox, 2009). In the past two decades,
studies on the etiology of intergenerational criminal behavior have increased. However, studies
on its explanatory factors, such as the role of maternal incarceration history, have generated
heterogeneous findings (Kirk & Wakefield, 2018; Turney & Wildeman, 2015).
Some studies suggest that maternal incarceration is not detrimental to or even beneficial
to the child’s behavioral outcomes. For instance, Wildeman and Turney (2014) suggest that the
effects of maternal incarceration on the child’s behavioral problems are often null. They indicate
that the impetus for the child’s behavioral problems might be an adverse accumulation of
disadvantages preceding maternal incarceration, considering that incarcerated mothers are a
more selected group of marginalized women than justice-involved men (Johnson & Waldfogel,
2002; Wildeman, 2009). This argument is consistent with the study by Giordano and Copp
(2015), which suggests that children of incarcerated mothers face “packages of risks,” including
family disruption, exposure to maternal drug use and antisocial behavior, domestic violence, and
45
economic strain. Because these factors related to the mother’s lifestyle can massively impact the
child’s behaviors relative to maternal incarceration, the imprisonment of the mother may become
less consequential to or even reduce the child’s delinquent behaviors (Roettger, 2015).
Other studies indicate that maternal incarceration is only detrimental to children with
specific sociodemographic characteristics. Specifically, the impact of maternal imprisonment
varies by the child’s gender (Burgess-Proctor et al., 2016), developmental stage (Cho, 2010),
racial and ethnic background (Wakefield & Wildeman, 2018; Western & Wildeman, 2009), and
socioeconomic status (Turney & Wildeman, 2015). For instance, boys with incarcerated mothers
are more likely to exhibit externalizing problems such as delinquent behaviors, whereas girls are
more likely to develop internalizing problems (Burgess-Proctor et al., 2016). Compared with
those who experienced maternal incarceration in adulthood, children who experienced it in
childhood or adolescence are more likely to be incarcerated in later life (Cho, 2010). Further,
Wildeman and Turney (2014) reported that European American children have shown diminished
behavioral problems after the imprisonment of mothers. Additionally, the research by Turney
and Wildeman (2015) suggests that the effect of maternal incarceration on children varies by the
mother’s propensity for incarceration. Maternal incarceration is most deleterious for children
who are least likely to experience it but are not as detrimental to children whose mothers are at
high risk for imprisonment.
However, some studies still suggest that maternal incarceration is an essential contributor
to the intergenerational transmission of imprisonment even after controlling for pre-incarceration
disadvantages and the child’s sociodemographic characteristics (Hagan & Foster, 2012; Lee et
al., 2013; Turney & Wildeman, 2015). Maternal incarceration involves disruptions in the child’s
living arrangement and attachment to the mother. When the mother is imprisoned, the child is
46
unlikely to live with the father and most likely to relocate to a new household with a
grandmother or a foster mother as the new primary caregiver (Glaze & Maruschak, 2016;
Johnson & Waldfogel, 2002; Mumola & Mumola, 2009). Because there are fewer prisons for
women than men, mothers tend to be incarcerated far from home, making sustained
communication and visits from the child less likely (Cho, 2010). Further, as mothers are often
the primary caregivers of the child, there is a greater tendency for the child to experience a
substantial level of stress due to incarceration-related events, such as being present at arrest and
sentencing (Dallaire & Wilson, 2010). Because living disruptions and elevated stress are
associated with an increased risk of incarceration among children (Allen et al., 2002; Fomby &
Cherlin, 2007), maternal incarceration may be positively linked to the intergenerational
transmission of imprisonment.
The inconsistent findings regarding the role of maternal incarceration on the child’s risk
of criminal justice involvement are potentially attributable to the use of an oversimplified
dichotomized maternal incarceration history measure in most studies (i.e., whether the child had
experienced maternal confinement; Kirk & Wakefield, 2018; Mears et al., 2015). Because the
effects of maternal incarceration have been found to vary by the frequency and duration of
incarceration (Cho, 2010), treating maternal incarceration as a dichotomous event mask
significant variations in the child’s experience and its respective consequence (Kirk &
Wakefield, 2018; Mears et al., 2015). To investigate the type of maternal incarceration histories
detrimental to the child’s behavior outcomes, this study used maternal incarceration trajectories
over the life course to determine their associations with the intergenerational transmission of
imprisonment.
47
The developmental trajectory theories (Chung et al., 2002; Moffitt, 1993) and the
differential stress exposure theory (Dohrenwend, 1973) provide useful guidance for this
investigation. The developmental trajectory theories emphasize the importance of examining
within-subject changes in offending career over time (Blumstein, 1986). They predict that there
are different subgroups within the offender population with distinctive etiologies that follow
diverse developmental offending trajectories (Chung et al., 2002). The differential stress
exposure theory argues that varying levels of exposure to stressful life events, such as different
maternal incarceration experiences, represent an unequal distribution of stressors among
subgroups, which could contribute to different levels of maladjustment problems (Vanroelen et
al., 2010).
Guided by these theoretical frameworks, we hypothesize that children with different
maternal incarceration histories would have distinctive levels of risk of being involved in the
criminal justice system. This study is among the first endeavors to understand the consequences
of maternal incarceration by using comprehensive longitudinal measures. It generates a nuanced
understanding of the subgroups of children that are most impacted by maternal incarceration.
This knowledge is essential for customized criminal justice intervention to interrupt the
intergenerational transmission of imprisonment in the United States.
Methods
Data and Sample
This study used the 2004 SISFCF data for analysis. The SISFCF provides a nationally
representative sample of women in state and federal prisons. It was implemented periodically
from 1974 to 2004, then performed again in 2016, renamed the Survey of Prison Inmates (SPI).
48
However, because the SPI data are not available for public use, the SISFCF 2004 is the most
current national dataset on women prisoners.
It used a stratified two-stage sample design. The first stage selected facilities to be
included and the second stage selected individuals to be interviewed. A total of 287 state prisons
and 39 federal prisons participated in the survey. Overall, 14,499 individuals and 3,686
individuals in federal facilities were interviewed (James & Glaze, 2006; Maruschak, 2008).
Through face-to-face interviews, participants reported their incarceration histories for a
maximum of 12 episodes, incarceration experiences (i.e., type of correctional facilities confined,
type of offenses convicted, and whether or not being sentenced as an adult), sociodemographic
characteristics, and criminal justice involvement of the child.
Because maternal incarceration trajectories over the life course served as an essential
component in the data analysis, only women who were mothers and had at least one complete
incarceration history data (i.e., the date of incarceration, duration of incarceration, and date of
release) were included in the study. The final sample had 881 mothers imprisoned in state and
federal correctional facilities.
Measures
Maternal Incarceration Trajectories
Based on the length of time (in months) incarcerated each year, a recent working paper
identified four groups of mothers in the SISFCF with distinct incarceration trajectories through
group-based trajectory modeling (Zhao et al., 2020). The actual and predicted trajectories for
each estimated group are presented in Figure 3.1. Group 1 was the stably escalating group (n =
33, 3.75%) in which the imprisoned mothers had experienced an increasingly longer duration of
incarceration each year from childhood to adulthood. Group 2, the moderate declining trajectory
49
(n = 665, 75.48%), was the largest group wherein members were incarcerated from childhood to
middle adulthood for approximately 5 months a year and experienced a sharp decrease in the
annual length of incarceration in young adulthood. Groups 3 and 4 were bell-shaped trajectories.
Group 3 was the adolescence-peak trajectory (n = 109, 12.37%), and Group 4 was the young-
adulthood-peak trajectory (n = 74, 8.40%). Members in Group 3 were incarcerated for a higher
number of months each year since childhood. Their annual length of incarceration peaked in
adolescence, and then declined in young adulthood. Members in Group 4 were incarcerated for a
small number of months each year in childhood. Their annual length of incarceration peaked in
young adulthood then steadily declined. The maternal incarceration trajectory memberships were
the predicting variables in this study.
Child’s Incarceration History
In the SISFCF survey, each participant was asked whether her child or stepchild has ever
been sentenced and served time in jail. Responses were coded as a dichotomous variable (1 =
have child or stepchild sentenced and served time in jail, 0 = do not have child or stepchild
sentenced and served time in jail). Participants who selected “blank” were coded as missing. The
child’s incarceration history served as the dependent variable in the analysis.
Maternal Incarceration Experiences
This study has controlled for indicators of the mother’s incarceration experiences,
including the type of correctional facilities confined, type of offenses convicted, and number of
times being sentenced as an adult.
Specifically, participants were asked about the type of correctional facilities they were
sentenced to through the following survey item: “What type of institution were you sentenced
to—a juvenile facility, local or county jail, state prison, other state facility, or federal facility?”
50
Four continuous variables were created to represent the total number of episodes of confinement
in jail, prison, juvenile facility, and other facilities.
Participants were also asked to name up to five convicted offenses regarding each
incarceration. Guided by the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ categorizing of offenses, five
continuous variables were created to represent the total number of property offenses, violent
offenses, drug offenses, public order offenses, and other offenses.
Moreover, participants were asked about how they were sentenced for each incarceration
episode through the following survey item: “For the (read above offenses), were you sentenced
as an adult, a youthful offender, or a juvenile?” If the participant was younger than 18 years and
was sentenced as an adult, then the participant was categorized as being sentenced as an adult. A
continuous variable that represents the number of times that the participant being sentenced as an
adult was incorporated into the analysis.
Sociodemographic Characteristics
This study also controlled for important factors associated with the child’s criminal
justice involvement, including the mother’s socioeconomic characteristics and other factors
identified in the literature (Greene et al., 2000; Hollin & Palmer, 2006). Specifically,
socioeconomic factors such as the mother’s racial and ethnic background, educational
attainment, employment status, living arrangement, and marital status were incorporated into the
analysis (Blanchette, 2002; Byrne & Howells, 2002; Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2013; Sorbello et
al., 2002). The mother’s prior foster care involvement and experiences of physical and sexual
abuse were included as covariates.
Analytical Procedure
51
Data analysis preceded in four steps using the SAS 9.4 programming language. First,
frequency distributions of categorical variables and measures of central tendency of continuous
variables were examined to reflect the imprisoned mother’s sociodemographic characteristics,
incarceration experiences, and the child’s criminal justice involvement. Second, ANOVA and
Student–Newman–Keuls tests for continuous variables and chi-square tests for categorical
variables were conducted to compare the characteristics of subgroups of imprisoned mothers
with distinct incarceration trajectories. Third, simple correlation analyses were conducted to
examine the associations between the child’s risk of incarceration and the mother’s incarceration
trajectories, sociodemographic characteristics, and incarceration experiences. Fourth, controlling
for the mother’s sociodemographic characteristics and incarceration experiences, multivariate
logistic regression was conducted to investigate the relationship between maternal incarceration
trajectories and the intergenerational transmission of imprisonment. Unless otherwise indicated,
the significance level (two-tailed) was set at p < .05.
Results
Descriptive Statistics
Mothers imprisoned in state and federal correctional facilities were, on average, 37.57
years of age (Table 3.1). Most of them were European Americans (55%), followed by African
Americans (39%). Before the most recent incarceration, more than half of the participants were
employed, 40% had a high school diploma, and only 20% were married. Moreover,
approximately 16% of the imprisoned mothers were previously involved in the foster care
system.
Experiences of physical and sexual abuse were prevalent among this population.
Approximately 23% of the imprisoned mothers had experienced physical abuse, and 44% had
52
experienced sexual abuse. Participants also reported their child’s criminal justice involvement.
On average, 10% of them have a child or stepchild with incarceration histories.
In terms of incarceration experiences, these imprisoned mothers on average had more
than three episodes of incarceration in prisons, more than two episodes of confinement in jails,
and two episodes of confinement in juvenile facilities. Property offenses were the most prevalent
convictions among them, whereas violent offenses were the least common convictions.
Comparative Statistics
The characteristics of imprisoned mothers following distinct incarceration trajectories are
presented in Table 3.1. ANOVA and chi-square tests revealed that the stably escalating group
members were significantly older (F = 36.37, df = 3, p < .001) than other group members, had a
lower percentage of Native Americans (χ2 = 7.89, df = 3, p < .05), and a lower prevalence of
foster care involvement (χ2 = 10.77, df = 3, p = .01) and sexual abuse experience (χ2 = 9.32, df =
3, p = .03). The moderate declining group had significantly fewer episodes of prison
confinements (2.69) compared to other groups. The adolescence-peak group had a significantly
higher percentage of Native Americans (12.84%) and a higher prevalence of foster care
involvement (23.85%).
In addition, the young-adulthood-peak group was significantly older (42.00 years) than
the moderate declining group (36.63 years) and the adolescence-peak group (36.71 years).
Additionally, children whose mothers followed the young-adulthood-peak incarceration
trajectory had a significantly higher rate of criminal justice involvement than children whose
mothers followed other incarceration trajectories (χ2 = 9.32, df = 3, p = .03).
Correlation Analyses
53
Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients were computed to assess the
relationship between the child’s risk of incarceration and the mother’s incarceration trajectories,
sociodemographic characteristics, and incarceration experiences. Findings suggested that the
moderately declining maternal incarceration trajectory was negatively associated with the child’s
risk of incarceration (r = -.07, p = .04) while the young-adulthood-peak maternal incarceration
trajectory was positively correlated with the child’s risk of incarceration (r = .08, p = .03).
Besides maternal incarceration trajectories, the number of episodes that the mother was confined
in juvenile justice facilities was significantly correlated with the child’s risk of incarceration (r =
-.07, p = .03).
Multivariate Logistic Regression
Findings from multivariate logistic regression on the association between maternal
incarceration trajectories and the child’s criminal justice involvement are detailed in Table 3.2.
After controlling for the mothers’ sociodemographic characteristics and incarceration
experiences, maternal incarceration trajectories were significantly associated with the
intergenerational transmission of imprisonment. Specifically, children whose mothers followed
the young-adulthood-peak incarceration trajectory had 2.87 the odds as children whose mothers
followed the moderate declining incarceration trajectory to have imprisonment histories (95% CI
= 1.05–7.83, p = .04).
In addition to maternal incarceration trajectories, sexual abuse experience and juvenile
justice involvement of the imprisoned mother were significantly associated with the child’s risk
of incarceration. Specifically, children whose mothers experienced sexual abuse had 1.69 the
odds to be involved in the criminal justice system as compared with children whose mothers did
not experience sexual abuse (95% CI = 1.06–2.71, p = .03). Further, children with mothers who
54
were confined in juvenile justice facilities for a higher number of episodes had lower odds of
being incarcerated than children with mothers who were confined in juvenile justice facilities for
a lower number of episodes (OR=.32, 95% CI = .11–.98, p = .04).
Discussion
This study is among the initial efforts to investigate the intergenerational transmission of
imprisonment to the child across pre-determined maternal incarceration trajectories over the life
course. Findings highlighted that children whose mothers followed distinct imprisonment
trajectories were found to had significantly different odds of being involved in the criminal
justice system. In addition to maternal incarceration trajectories, findings revealed other
predictors of the child’s justice involvement, including the mother’s experience of sexual abuse
and juvenile justice involvement.
The most significant finding in this study is that children with particular maternal
incarceration histories are at higher risks for criminal justice involvement. Specifically, children
with mothers following the young-adulthood-peak incarceration trajectory had significantly
higher odds of being involved in the criminal justice system than children with mothers
following the moderate declining incarceration trajectory. Compared to mothers in the young-
adulthood-peak group, those in the moderate declining incarceration group had significantly
fewer episodes of prison confinement. Different from jails and other correctional facilities,
prisons represent a more punitive form of social control in terms of the sentence length, distance
from home, and seriousness of convictions (Massoglia & Warner, 2011; Sabol et al., 2009).
Therefore, mothers exposed to a lower number of prison confinements are less likely to have
severe and long-lasting social reintegration consequences, such as homelessness and
unemployment, and can usually achieve better reentry outcomes (Dohrenwend, 1973; Vanroelen
55
et al., 2010). This finding suggests that routine adoption of alternatives to incarceration, such as
specialized courts and community supervision, may lower the rate of criminal justice
involvement among children with maternal incarceration experiences. It also suggests the need
for legislation and policy reform on the conditions under which to use prison confinement.
The distinct characteristics of incarceration trajectories between the young-adulthood-
peak group and the moderate declining group may also explain disparities in their child’s risk of
incarceration. Compared with the moderate declining group, mothers in the young-adulthood-
peak group were more embedded in the correctional system (i.e., spending most of the time in
correctional facilities) between ages 18 and 38 years, when their child was most likely be in
childhood and adolescence. Literature suggests that a child who has experienced maternal
incarceration in childhood and adolescence was most severely affected. In contrast, a child who
has experienced maternal incarceration in adulthood was least affected (Cho, 2010). To interrupt
the intergenerational transmission of imprisonment, criminal justice interventions that aim to
alleviate the depth of criminal justice involvement among mothers in young adulthood could be
useful. Further, social work interventions need to consider the unique needs of children who have
experienced maternal incarceration in certain developmental stages, especially childhood and
adolescence.
Contributing to the literature on the etiology of the intergenerational transmission of
imprisonment, this study found that the mother’s sexual abuse experience was a significant
predictor of the child’s risk of incarceration. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, sexual
abuse experiences are prevalent among women entering prisons and jails (Travis et al., 2014;
Bloom & Covington, 2008). Their sexual abuse experiences have been shown to be associated
with an elevated risk of mental health problems (Bloom & Covington, 2008). Moreover, during
56
confinement, women with mental health problems are more likely to become targets of sexual
abuse by correctional staff compared to women without mental health problems (Buchanan,
2007; Travis et al., 2014). These cumulative adverse experiences, if not adequately addressed,
can have long-lasting consequences on the well-being and functioning of women, which might
contribute to delinquency behaviors and even criminal activities among the child (Hornor, 2010).
To lower the odds of criminal justice involvement among the child, trauma-informed reentry
programs for the imprisoned mother are essential.
Additionally, findings suggest that children with mothers who were confined in juvenile
facilities for a higher number of episodes had lower odds of being incarcerated than children
with mothers who were confined in juvenile facilities for a lower number of episodes. This
finding may seem counterintuitive. However, compared with adult correctional facilities that
emphasize more on punishment, juvenile facilities were found to be smaller, have much lower
inmate-to-staff ratios, and place greater emphasis on treatment, counseling, education, and
mentoring of inmates (Banks, 2013; Kupchik, 2007). Although our data do not allow further
examination of the association between juvenile justice involvement and future criminal
engagement, we speculate a positive association between the number of episodes of juvenile
justice involvement and crime prevention considering the unique features of juvenile facilities.
Therefore, findings in this study may suggest that rehabilitative-oriented interventions provided
to the mothers rather than punishment-oriented programs can potentially have positive effects on
the child’s behavioral outcomes and lower the odds of the intergenerational transmission of
confinement.
This study is subject to several limitations. First, because of the nature of secondary data
analysis, factors related to the child’s criminal justice involvement such as peer delinquency
57
(Moffitt, 1993) and demographic characteristics (Burgess-Proctor et al., 2016; Cho, 2010;
Turney & Wildeman, 2015; Western & Wildeman, 2009) were not included. To advance our
knowledge on the association between maternal incarceration trajectories and the
intergenerational transmission of imprisonment, future primary data collection efforts that
capture important criminogenic factors among the child are necessary. Second, the survey relied
on self-reports from incarcerated mothers, which is subject to recall bias. Third, this study
revealed the association between the mother’s juvenile justice involvement and the child’s risk of
incarceration. However, our interpretation of this association needs further investigation. Future
research that compares the effects of juvenile and adult justice involvement on crime prevention
is needed. Lastly, the SISFCF 2004 was collected more than a decade ago. Considering the social
changes in the past decade, scholars should be cautious about generalizing study findings to
imprisoned mothers and their children at present.
Conclusions
Despite these limitations, this research represents the first endeavor to examine the
association between maternal incarceration trajectories and the intergenerational transmission of
imprisonment. It identified the type of maternal imprisonment most detrimental to children and
laid the foundation for future social work research to use comprehensive longitudinal measures
to understand the effects of maternal incarceration. Findings suggest that policy and legislation
change that endorses routine use of alternatives to prison confinement are potentially useful in
lowering the odds of the intergenerational criminal behaviors. Moreover, trauma-informed
rehabilitative programs for imprisoned mothers and criminal justice programs that target the
unique challenges of children who experienced maternal incarceration in specific developmental
stages are essential to interrupt the intergenerational transmission of imprisonment.
58
Table 3. 1. Sociodemographic characteristics and incarceration experiences among mothers with distinct
incarceration trajectories and their child's criminal justice involvement, SISFCF 2004 (N=881)
Group1:
Stably
Escalating
Group 2:
Moderate
Declining
Group 3:
Adolescence
-Peak
Group 4:
Young-
Adulthood
- Peak

Total
Sociodemographic Characteristics
Age*** 49.39*** 36.63 36.71 42.00*** 37.57
Race/Ethnicity (%)
White American 57.58 55.94 50.46 56.76 55.39
African American 42.42 38.35 39.45 37.84 38.59
Latino American 18.18 15.34 16.67 14.86 15.55
Native American* .00* 6.77 12.84* 6.76 7.26
Asian American .00 1.05 .00 .00 .79
Pacific Islander .00 .15 .00 .00 .11
Unknown* .00 .15 1.83* .00 .34
High School Graduate (%) 54.55 39.88 32.11 44.59 39.77
Employed (%) 53.13 54.82 49.53 56.94 53.23
Married (%) 30.30 19.58 19.27 27.03 20.57
Housing Stability (%) 84.38 82.08 77.57 79.17 79.80
Foster Care Involvement (%) * 6.06 * 16.39 23.85 * 8.11 16.23
Experience of Physical Abuse (%) 18.18 22.11 23.85 28.38 22.70
Experience of Sexual Abuse (%) * 19.35* 44.93 45.87 46.58 43.93

Incarceration Experiences

Type of Facilities Incarcerated
Prisons*** 4.42 2.95*** 3.93 3.79 3.21
Jails 2.77 2.33 2.32 2.25 2.33
Juvenile Facility 1.00 1.69 1.37 1.50 1.60
Other Facility 1.00 1.38 1.67 3.50 1.50
Sentenced as an Adult 1.68 1.86 2.25 1.98 1.91
Type of Offenses Convicted
Property Offenses 2.36 1.87 2.18 1.84 1.93
Violent Offenses 1.10 1.45 1.33 1.54 1.43
Drug Offenses 1.95 1.70 1.85 1.75 1.74
Public Order Offenses 1.20 1.95 1.58 1.67 1.87
Other Offenses .00 1.13 1.00 1.00 1.08
Child’s Criminal Justice
Involvement (%) *
12.12 9.02 10.09 20.27* 10.22
+ p < .10, * p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001.

59
Table 3. 2. Multivariate statistics: Maternal incarceration trajectories and child's criminal justice
involvement, SISFCF 2004 (N=881)

Child’s Criminal Justice Involvement

OR 95% CI p-value
Maternal Incarceration Trajectories
Group 1: Stably Escalating Group
(Ref: Group 2 Moderate Declining Group)
1.96 [.44-8.77] .38
Group 3: Adolescence-Peak Group
(Ref: Group 2 Moderate Declining Group)
1.61 [.52-4.98] .41
Group 4: Young-Adulthood-peak Group
(Ref: Group 2 Moderate Declining Group) *
2.87 [1.05-7.83] .04

Sociodemographic Characteristics

Race/Ethnicity
African American (Ref: European American) 1.46 [.89-2.39] .13
Latino American (Ref: European American) 1.23 [.63-2.42] .55
Native American (Ref: European American) .94 [.37-2.37] .89
Asian American (Ref: European American) 2.40 [.25-22.86] .45
Pacific Islander (Ref: European American) <.01 [<.01->999.99] .99
High School Graduate .76 [.47-1.22] .25
Married 1.08 [.62-1.86] .80
Employed 1.46 [.91-2.35] .12
Foster Care Involvement .62 [.29-1.31] .21
Experience of Physical Abuse .94 [.79-1.12] .48
Experience of Sexual Abuse * 1.69 [1.06-2.71] .03

Maternal Incarceration Experiences

Type of Facilities Incarcerated
Prison .98 [.85-1.13] .76
Jail .95 [.76-1.19] .65
Juvenile Facilities * .32 [.11-0.98] .04
Other Facilities 1.07 [.69-1.67] .76
Sentenced as an Adult 1.00 [.82-1.20] .95
Type of Offenses Convicted
Property Offenses 1.01 [.82-1.24] .94
Violent Offenses 1.00 [.71-1.41] 1.00
Drug Offenses .94 [.73-1.20] .61
Public Order Offenses 1.03 [.81-1.30] .83
Other Offenses <.01 [<.01->999.99] .98
* p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001.

60
Figure 3. 1. The mothers' retrospective histories of incarceration: Months of incarceration per year
(N=881)

Group 1: Stably escalating incarceration trajectory (n=33, 3.75%)
Group 2: Moderate declining incarceration trajectory (n=665, 75.48%)
Group 3: Adolescence-peak incarceration trajectory (n=109, 12.37%)
Group 4: Young-adulthood-peak incarceration trajectory (n=74, 8.40%)

Months Incarcerated
61
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Abstract (if available)

Abstract Background and Purpose: Literature suggests that imprisoned women with children have a significantly higher prevalence of mental health problems than those in the general population and imprisoned women without children. Children with maternal incarceration experiences also have substantially higher incarceration rates than their counterparts without maternal incarceration experiences. Although incarceration is a critical social determinant of the functioning and well-being of the mother and child, research regarding its role on the mother’s mental health problems and the intergenerational transmission of confinement have revealed contradictory findings. These inconsistencies are potentially attributable to the different incarceration histories across samples that are masked by the use of a dichotomized incarceration history measure. This dissertation project used comprehensive incarceration trajectories over the life course to determine the nature and array of incarceration histories associated with the mental health problems among the mothers and the intergenerational transmission of imprisonment. ❧ Methods: The study sample consisted of 881 imprisoned mothers who had participated in the Survey of Inmates in State and Federal Correctional Facilities (SISFCF). Through face-to-face interviews, participants self-reported sociodemographic characteristics, incarceration histories, mental health problems, and their child’s criminal justice involvement. Chapter 1 employed group-based trajectory modeling to identify and characterize subgroups of mothers with different incarceration histories. Chapter 2 then used logistic regressions to examine the associations between the mother’s incarceration trajectories over the life course and mental health problems. In Chapter 3, multivariate logistic regression was conducted to examine the associations between maternal incarceration trajectories and the intergenerational transmission of imprisonment. ❧ Results: Chapter 1 revealed four groups of mothers with distinct incarceration trajectories: stably escalating group, moderate declining group, adolescence-peak group, and young-adulthood-peak group. Bivariate analyses suggested that the stably escalating group had a lower rate of sexual abuse experience. The moderate declining group had a significantly fewer number of prison confinements. Moreover, the adolescence-peak group had a higher prevalence of foster care placement. Chapter 2 suggested that incarceration trajectories were significantly associated with post-traumatic stress disorder diagnosis and demonstrated a trend toward significance to be associated with anger symptoms and suicidal ideation. However, they were not significantly associated with most other mental health problems, such as depressive disorder and anxiety disorder. In Chapter 3, findings illustrated that children whose mothers followed the young-adulthood-peak trajectory had higher odds of being incarcerated than children whose mothers followed the moderate declining trajectory. Moreover, the mother’s experience of sexual abuse and juvenile justice involvement were also significant predictors of the intergenerational transmission of incarceration. ❧ Conclusions and Implications: This study suggests the need to use comprehensive incarceration measures to understand its direct and collateral consequences. It also discusses the implications for mental health and criminal justice interventions that tailor to the unique challenges encountered by subgroups of imprisoned mothers and their children.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Zhao, Qianwei (author)

Core Title Incarceration trajectories of mothers in state and federal prisons and their relation to the mother’s mental health problems and child’s risk of incarceration

School Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work

Degree Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Program Social Work

Publication Date 04/30/2020

Defense Date 03/20/2020

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag incarceration trajectory,intergenerational transmission of imprisonment,Mental Health,mother,OAI-PMH Harvest,Prison

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Valdez, Avelardo (committee chair), Cepeda, Alice (committee member), Chou, Chih-Ping (committee member)

Creator Email qianwei.zhao@gmail.com,qianweiz@usc.edu

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-291687

Unique identifier UC11666096

Identifier etd-ZhaoQianwe-8379.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-291687 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-ZhaoQianwe-8379.pdf

Dmrecord 291687

Document Type Dissertation

Rights Zhao, Qianwei

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA