Brief Description

The research proposal assignment was the most difficult assignment that I completed for this course because it required for me to really act as a social scientist. It was a bit difficult to find a problem that I wanted to focus on and to develop a stance. I had to take a second and see what are major issues that society faces and what is one that means something to me. This is how I got the topic of the effects of family members being incarcerated. As I wrote my draft I was still a bit confused about what I was writing and I didn’t have a clear idea of where I was going with it. To get through it I continued to look at examples and tried to mirror a bit of what they did. My draft for the paper wasn’t what I wanted it to be because I felt that I was missing components in some of the sections of the proposal. However, what gave a push to know what to change up, was the feedback that I received. After I wrote what I had to, I was able to see what I was still missing through the feedback. This is when I started to see the benefits of writing a draft and then having someone else review it. After the feedback I was able to reevaluate my draft and add more information to fulfil each section of the research proposal.

The Effects of Incarceration on Family Members

The Problem
The purpose of this proposal is to examine the ways in which family members and specifically
children are affected by the incarceration of a family member. Due to mass incarceration there
have been many households left broken, with a missing part of their family. It is becoming more
likely that children are growing up in a single parent household due to this misfortune. Their
developmental growth is at risk as they see how the law took away their parents. The target of
this research is to see in greater detail how children are impacted by the separation from their
parents and to develop a way to help them. 

​Background

As mass incarceration continues, they’re children caught in the crossfire who are facing
challenges themselves. They’re approximately 5.1 million children who have at least one parent
incarcerated. It is said that the stress and trauma they face can equal up to the trauma faced by
domestic violence and divorce in the household (Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2016).  The
children who endure this not only lose a parent at the time but as well as a source of income that
could help them substantially. This is how families begin to fall in between the poverty line.
Children of Incarcerated Parents, A Shared Sentence ​ states “If incarceration rates  hadn’t increased during  a 24-year period, the  U.S. poverty rate would have fallen by 20 percent, rather
than remaining relatively steady.” To further this idea, due to the increased arrests families are
left with the challenge of getting money and providing for the children. This then leads them
down a fast pace slope into poverty or if they already fall under the poverty line this digs them
into a dipper hole. They are also left with the legal debt of the family who is incarcerated. They
are losing money before they even gain money. This can lead people down a bleak path where
they turn to illegal ways in order to survive, which is then starting a cycle that can be difficult to
break.
Furthermore, many families with a member incarcerated come from desolate
backgrounds.  “ Kids with incarcerated parents are significantly less likely to live in
neighborhoods  that are able to be supportive of families.(Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2016)”
There is not much aid for the families that already live in a destitute community. They live where
everyone else is struggling to make ends meet as well, and there is no one that can really help
them. They’re just stuck in this hard position in which it can be difficult to turn to anyway or get
any type of help. In addition to this it can lead to the family being unable to provide from themselves completely and they’re left homeless. In the article ​Incarceration Impact on Kids and Families ​ it states “studies show that the growth in incarceration of men with children contributes to higher rates of homelessness among black children in particular by thinning family finances and placing additional strains on mothers.” The raise of incarceration continues to add to the epidemic of homelessness. People who are poor can barely afford to keep a roof over their head
and the incarceration of a family member without any aid is the nail in the coffin that can solidify
the inevitability of them ending up homeless. 

Literature Review

There are multiple ways in which a family is affected by the incarceration of a loved one.
It can be described as primary and secondary effects in which the primary effects are derived as a
result of the family member being incarcerated on its own and the secondary effect is a result of
the changes that are linked to the incarceration such as economic issues (Arditti, 2012). The
incarceration of children’s parents is associated with the development of mental health issues,
behavioral problems, as well as school problems. There was a trend of antisocial behavior.
They’re also more likely to experience externalizing problems such as aggression , as well as
internalizing problems such as depression (Arditti, 2012).  Children seem to be the main target of
the involuntary destruction that comes along with a family member being incarcerated. Left with
no help, children are more likely to end up incarcerated as well. This is seen to be true in sons
when the parental figure is incarcerated. They are more likely to follow in the footsteps of their
father in this instance. This was the research stated in the book by Joyce A. Arditti, I on the other
hand would research how the nature of the crime affects the children. How would specific crimes
fathers commit affect their sons differently and I would do the same things for mothers and
daughters. This would allow for people to get a deeper sense of how the children are affected so
they could be better helped. Also they should be asked about the secondary effects of the
incarcerations such as the money issues that follow the incarceration. The research that should be
conducted is programs that could help children with an incarcerated parent with food,clothing,
and meals so they don’t feel out of place.
There was also research into the idea of a mutual aid group to help minority children who
face the issue of an incarcerated parent. There were specific techniques used in the groups that
support the children such as solution focused therapy, an interactional approach, and a mutual aid
approach. These techniques are used to view the group process and developments of the clients.
Through this the group leaders are able to focus on here and now member to member interactions
so that the members can use each other for mutual support (Springer, Lynch, Rubin). This can be
effective as the best support can come from people who can relate with the circumstance.
Although the existing research is sound I would add an initial evaluation of  each child so that
multiple groups could be set up, in which the children are placed in a group with the people they
may be able to relate the best with. There should be multiple groups set up in which the trauma
the children endure match up with each other. This process may show the best results because it
will help the children feel less out of place. The conversations and support between the children
has the potential to substantially help them. 

Objectives
The target for this research is to examine the ways in which family members are affected
by the incarceration of a loved one as well as to help them proceed with their lives after the
situation. The proposed question on how to help them is the focal point. There is a high chance
that the children of the incarcerated individuals will fall down the same path as them and the
children should be helped before it gets there. They should have the support they need. The
group therapy approach should make the children feel comfortable with each other and give them
a safe place to express their feelings. With a counselor and the people around them they would
have support which will make them less likely to turn to criminal behavior. In addition, they
should also have some economic support if they need it so they don’t struggle in this sense as
well. Many families struggle when one of the parents is in prison and this contributes to the
poverty line. With a program implemented to aid children and their families there should be a
stop to families reaching the poverty line, as well as aid the families who already lay below the
poverty line. The program could help families look for low income housing, and aid the children
with meals. The research will be aimed to see whether or not options like therapy after the
incident will help to decrease the long term effects of the situation. As well as support groups for
children so they don’t feel alone or ashamed by the incident. As well as to dig deeper and see if
there can be monetary support for the families struggling to provide or to see if possible, some
leniency can be shown towards them. This in turn will help them continue through life without
the addition of any struggles. 

Methods
The goal of this research is to set in place opportunities which would benefit those who are
affected by the incarceration of a family member and are at risk of also going down a dark path.
To achieve this, the first step that would be taken is to hold a focus group with the other parent
that is not incarcerated and the child. The participants would have had someone in their family
gone to jail in the past year. It will focus on how they feel about the situation at hand as well as
suggestions on what they think can help them because they’re the main target.  A focus group
can be more effective because one is able to hear multiple perspectives at once as well as it easier
to find a trend among the group. As they converse they will be able to compare their situations
and relate with each other, which in turns creates viable information. This can also lead to them
being able to relate with one another so they don’t feel so alone which in turns can help in its
own way.
The purpose of this particular research is to get an in depth analysis of how the people are
affected and what professionals think can be done. This step would be to sit down with a
psychologist who specializes in human development to get their thoughts on the situation.This
will allow me to gather insight on how the brain is neurologically affected by the turn of events
which in turns will help to gather root based solutions. The questions posed will be along the
lines of when does it become apparent that one has been psychologically affected by the process,
is it when they grow up/develop or is it immediate? How can the stress and trauma affect their
body and how they handle situations regarding the law further on? What can be done to lessen
the effects such as the aggression and depression that can come along with seeing their loved one
in prison? This will help to gather the information needed to see if solutions like therapy and
support groups are beneficial to them. 

Conclusion
Ultimately, as the raise of mass incarceration continues more and more family members
are being taken from their loved ones. This in turns can create a lasting effect on children and
families as a whole. After extensive research and viewing the psychological effects it can have
on a child such as antisocial behavior and the economic effects it has on the family as a whole
there has to be a change emitted. To aid this situation there must be orders set in place. With the
research that has already been provided and with the addition of the help of the people I elicit, I
hope to discover a few concrete procedures which can ultimately help the families out and take
away from the rising number of incarcerations.

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