Reclaiming Parenthood After Incarceration: The Nexus of Determination to Desist, Fulfillment of Parental Responsibilities, and Recidivism

• Published date: 01 June 2023
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/00938548231164965
• Author: Lin Liu,Susan L. Miller
• Date: 01 June 2023
• Subject Matter: Articles

CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND BEHAVIOR, 2023, Vol. 50, No. 6, June 2023, 870 –890.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/00938548231164965

Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions

© 2023 International Association for Correctional and Forensic Psychology

870

RECLAIMING PARENTHOOD AFTER

INCARCERATION

The Nexus of Determination to Desist, Fulfillment of

Parental Responsibilities, and Recidivism

LIN LIU

Florida International University

SUSAN L. MILLER

University of Delaware

Prior research indicates that reclaiming family roles, such as parent or spouse, can facilitate re-entry and reintegration for

justice-involved individuals. However, few studies have examined whether a determination to desist and shield children from

the negative impact of crime is associated with reentry outcomes. This study examined the nexus of determination to desist,

parental nurturing practices, and recidivism. Multilevel longitudinal modeling was employed to analyze respondents’ varying

levels of commitment to nurturing children and recidivism risk. Results showed that returning mothers were more committed

to parenting activities than returning fathers. Moreover, with the effects of prior records, reentry programs, and familial

criminogenic environment controlled, we found that returning parents who were more committed to parenting had signifi-

cantly lower odds of recidivism. Implications for research and policy were discussed.

Keywords: parenting; reentry; recidivism; desistance; life course

In the current decarceration era, more than 600,000 justice-involved individuals in the

United States are released from prisons and reunited with their children and families each

year (Markman et al., 2016). Incarceration disproportionately affects the young, the poor,

and the undereducated, the same groups who are likely to be single parents, primary provid-

ers of financial support for their children, and important child caregivers (Clear, 2008; Clear

et al., 2001; Wildeman & Western, 2010). According to a report by the U.S. Bureau of

Justice Statistics, a majority of people who are in the state (55%) and federal (63%) prisons

reported having a child younger than 18 (Maruschak et al., 2021), and 46% of the incarcer-

ated parents reported they lived with children prior to incarceration (Haskins & Turney,

2018). Over the past 20 years, the number of children with a mother in prison in the United

AUTHORS’ NOTE: Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Lin Liu, Department of

Criminology and Criminal Justice, Florida International University, PCA-366A, 11200 SW 8th Street, Miami,

FL 33199; e-mail: linliu@fiu.edu.

1164965CJBXXX10.1177/00938548231164965Criminal Justice and BehaviorLiu, Miller / Parenthood and Desistance

research-article2023

Liu, Miller / PARENTHOOD AND DESISTANCE 871

States has more than doubled, and the number of children with incarcerated fathers has

grown by more than 77% (Shlafer et al., 2013). Currently, an estimated 2.7 million children

in the United States have an incarcerated parent (Young et al., 2020). Examining the experi-

ences of reclaiming parenthood following prison release is vital to effective social services

and reentry programming.

Extant reentry studies have examined the challenges faced by returning individuals

which include homelessness (e.g., Lutze et al., 2014), substance abuse (e.g., Griffin et al.,

2020), limited access to social service resources (e.g., Visher et al., 2004), difficulty transi-

tioning into new employment (e.g., Berg & Huebner, 2011), and association with antisocial

peers (e.g., Mowen & Boman, 2018). However, despite the current markedly high number

of postincarcerated mothers and fathers in reentry, research to estimate the impact of

reclaiming parenthood in reentry has been relatively limited. Gaps in the current literature

hinder a comprehensive understanding of parenthood and reentry outcomes. First, studies

examining parenthood often used a binary variable “having children or not” to capture par-

enthood and focused on between-group differences between parents and nonparents (Breen,

2014; Monsbakken et al., 2013; Stone & Rydberg, 2019). We know little about how the

variation in parenting commitment among parents affects the progression of their reentries.

Second, the majority of existing studies used either a sample of returning fathers or mothers

to explore reentry barriers. Quantitative studies comparing reentry experiences of returning

fathers and mothers in the United States are rare (for an exception, see Uggen & Kruttschnitt,

1998). Third, most past studies used cross-sectional research designs to assess a specific

risk factor and a reentry outcome, which does not capture the temporal change of reentry

experiences. Reentry is a cumulative social process (Western et al., 2015). Returning fathers

and mothers rebuild relationships with children over time; the temporal change in their

parenting efforts might be linked to temporal changes in other aspects of their reentry expe-

riences such as work hours.

The current study addressed the aforementioned literature gaps by examining the

postrelease adjustment and reclamation of parenthood of justice-involved individuals who

were imprisoned for serious violent offenses. Using longitudinal data on reentry experi-

ences of returning fathers and mothers, we explored whether there was a gendered pattern

in respondents’ desire to quit offending for the sake of their children, their efforts to learn

parenting skills, and their efforts to take care of their children. We also assessed whether the

commitment to parenting activities was a protective factor against recidivism. Finally, this

study captured the temporal change of reentry experiences of returning parents.

PARENTING AS A LIFE-COURSE TRANSITION

Life-course criminologists who focus on the continuation and desistance of offending

have identified parenthood as a major turning point upon which people embark on a trajec-

tory of crime desistance (e.g., Giordano et al., 2002, 2011; Laub et al., 1998; Sampson &

Laub, 1993). It has been proposed that parenthood motivates people to desist and, if they act

on that desire, their risk of recidivism will decrease (Bachman et al., 2013; Liu & Bachman,

2021; Laub et al., 1998). Giordano and colleagues discussed how a desire to desist can open

a door to cognitive transformation (Giordano et al., 2002). They argue justice-involved

individuals should have a greater openness to change and will perceive taking on a proso-

cial role as a “hook for change” onto which they can latch to knife off their criminal pasts,