Family and Community Resource Program

What are the negative impacts on children?

Separation from parents by prison can be devastating to children, resulting in feelings of abandonment, sadness, and anger, and can lead to eating and sleeping disorders, lower academic performance, and disruptive behavior. In middle childhood (ages 7-10), parental arrest and incarceration may have major impacts on social adjustment: many children in this age group develop aggressive behaviors and difficulty getting along with others, particularly in school. Early adolescent (ages 11-14) children of prisoners have typically had multiple experiences with parental crime, arrest, and incarceration. While some are able to overcome the absence of a parent by developing stable, productive patterns, many children of prisoners display maladaptive behavioral patterns and reject limitations on their behavior. Late adolescence is the period over which children develop a cohesive identity, the ability to engage in adult work and relationships, and the capacity to become independent and self-sufficient. In summary, parental incarceration and related enduring trauma, separation, and inadequate care interfere with child development, resulting in negative long-term outcomes, including intergenerational incarceration. More...