One cannot deny that, in a family, every individual is somehow dependent on another person for something. So, it’s quite imperative to think about what happens when a person gets incarcerated, as someone must be dependent on them. At first, it is essential to understand the meaning behind the term ‘incarceration,’ which is the state in which a person is being imprisoned. Generally, once a crime takes place, the next step is the imprisonment of the accused. When that happens, one tends to ignore people who can get influenced. The major unit which gets extremely affected by captivity of someone is their own family.
Members of both a joint or nuclear family tend to depend on each other for multiple reasons such as financial, economical, and psychological dependence. Even when the level of dependency which families ascertain with one another is known, the impact on the families of prisoners keeps on getting neglected and disregarded.
Usually, the first individual who gets affected because of the imprisonment of a person is their spouse. They may become emotionally wrecks due to detachment from their partner, which may lead them to a sense of loss. There are other secondary factors as well which make them devastated like a shortfall of money and facing the society. Additionally, a few supplementary aspects also affect them which often gets overlooked. These aspects are majorly monetary, in terms of the amount of money spent for prison visits, calls, and sending out money for the imprisoned partner. Additionally, the only way to maintain communication between these partners can be difficult, as sometimes booking lines are crowded, visiting hours are unsuitable, and no transport seems available at the moment. During such a vulnerable time of their lives, they may also be burdened with extra responsibilities (for instance, partners who have children end up becoming single parents).
Generally, family members are known as the ‘hidden victims in the criminal justice system. In the current context of incarceration, the imprisonment of parent(s) can lead to numerous difficulties for their children. Specifically, parents’ incarceration affects their child’s performance in schools/colleges. It also exhausts their mental health (they may observe sleeping and eating problems, depression, or withdrawal), and may create behavioral changes (hyperactivity, aggressiveness, or running away).
These psychological and behavioral changes also depend on the situation of the family. For example, one study established that children whose both parents were incarcerated developed more symptoms of depression. In addition to that, children may get involved in acts that are against social norms (like criminal activity or dishonesty). When children are exposed to their parent/ parents getting imprisoned at a very young age, they may be inclined towards facing a few problems (like substance abuse or psychological disorders) as it affects their development.
Parental incarceration also impacts the economic well-being of the children. Generally, it affects them due to the limited availability of resources and lack of consistent finance flow. Studies have also showcased that when parents are out of prison, their financial status remains unstable because they don’t get employed easily. This turns into a disadvantage for the whole family.
It’s an unfortunate reality that family gets affected the most in the scenario of incarceration. It’s an essential duty of people in power to help out the families of incarcerated people in some way, especially if all the members are dependent on the imprisoned individual. A way to make people aware of the consequences faced by the family in the future should be addressed.
Additionally, the government is one of the major stakeholders that can bring a positive and macro-level change by funding the affected family members; they can even provide these families support loans. Similarly, there can be an implementation of laws, rules, and regulations regarding this issue.
The families do not commit the crime but still get punished, irrespective of being innocent. Therefore, it’s necessary to act on this collection to bring out a change.
Muskaan Kashyap
