More than a separation : Incarcerated mothers' perception of the mother-child relationship following their detention

Abstract

This exploratory qualitative research, based on interviews with 15 incarcerated mothers, deals with incarcerated mothers' perceptions of the effect of their detention on the mother-child relationship. It also documents the perceived consequences of the incarceration and the children's reaction to their mother's detention. Analysis showed that a number of conditions - particularly instability and domestic violence, substance use, and restrictions regarding children's custody - were often present before the incarceration and already influencing the relationship between mother and child. But for those we interviewed, incarceration was an additional element that complicated an already difficult relationship between mother and child. Those interviewed provided thorough descriptions of children's reactions to their mother's incarceration and its consequences. Interviewees blamed their mothers for their own deviant choices but, while recognizing that they had placed their children at risk, also saw themselves as being part of the solution for the delinquency and substance-use problems their children might develop. They felt they would be able to break the cycle.