Citation

Zhao Q, Cepeda A, Chou CP, Valdez A. Crime Delinq. 2021; 67(10): 1513-1535.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2021, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0011128720974315

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Despite growing research on women's offending trajectories, knowledge on the imprisonment experiences of women who are mothers is limited. This study used a nationally representative dataset of state and federal prisoners to identify and characterize subgroups of mothers based on incarceration histories. Group-based trajectory modeling identified four groups with distinct incarceration trajectories: stable escalating group, moderate declining group, adolescence-peak group, and young-adulthood-peak group. Bivariate analyses then suggested that different incarceration trajectories were associated with adverse life experiences (i.e., foster care placement, sexual abuse experience) and confinement experiences (i.e., number of episodes of prison confinement). Discussed are the future research directions and implications for criminal justice policies and interventions targeting imprisoned mothers.

Language: en

Keywords

foster care placement; incarceration trajectories; mothers; prisons; sexual abuse