The Impact of Parental Incarceration on Children’s Health & Development

Abstract

The incarceration boom in the United States has resulted in high rates of parents serving time. According to recent estimates, one in ten Hoosier children has a parent who is or has been in prison or jail. Though incarceration is often treated as a discrete event, it is important to note that the time period extends both prior to and beyond the incarcerated phase (pre- and post-incarceration). Evidence on the relationship between parental incarceration and various children’s outcomes is inconsistent across the literature and often disappears when controlling for demographic and family characteristics. However, whether the relationship between parental incarceration and children’s health and development is causal or simply correlational, this population is at high risk for adverse outcomes and should be the target of interventions.