| The main purpose of this study was to identify barriers to parent-child interactions for mothers serving time in prison. Twenty-one women incarcerated at Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Pearl, Mississippi who were mothers of at least one child under the age of 18 served as participants. Each mother completed a consent form, demographic form, and an interview. The interview was designed to assess communication and visitation with children and to identify issues concerning education, trauma, child healthcare, and child development. All interviews were audio recorded and transcribed by the primary investigator. The study was qualitative in nature, and data are presented in terms of response themes, categories, and percentages. Obstacles to parentchild relationships identified included geographic distance, strained family relations, and economic limitations of substitute caregivers. Information from the incarcerated mothers adds to the limited body of literature on this population. |
