For some people, jail may be the byproduct of generational trauma passed down to them through their family. This trauma, which they may not even recognize, can shape their mental health, behavior, and decision-making long before they ever encounter the justice system. Understanding the link between generational trauma and incarceration can help explain why some people act in ways that may make them seem destined for incarceration.
What Is Generational Trauma?
Generational trauma, also known as intergenerational trauma, is emotional, psychological, and behavioral pain that’s shared from one generation to the next. This trauma often begins with a parent, grandparent, or even an earlier ancestor.
Types of generational trauma include:
- Physical, emotional, or sexual abuse
- Growing up in a house affected by substance use disorders
- Domestic violence
- Poverty, or food or home insecurity
- Untreated mental illness
- Incarceration
- Racism or discrimination
- War, displacement, or refugee experiences
- Death of caregivers or abandonment
- Exposure to community violence
- Living in an unsafe environment
Because it results in learned attitudes and behaviors, generational trauma doesn’t have to be a direct experience to impact someone. It could be something that happened to the person, or they could be exposed to it in their home environment through others. Either way, these patterns can become normalized, making it more difficult for people to recognize or escape them.
Outcomes associated with generational trauma include:
- Chronic anxiety or depression
- Low self-esteem or self-worth
- Emotional numbness or detachment
- Feelings of shame, guilt, or unworthiness
- Risk of chronic illness because of heightened stress
- Difficulty trusting others or forming healthy relationships
- Poor impulse control or emotional regulation
- Substance use
- Aggression, defiance, or oppositional behavior
- Distrust of authority figures
- Repetition of learned behavioral patterns
- Higher likelihood of behavioral issues or school dropout
- Increased risk of arrest or incarceration
The Link Between Generational Trauma and Jail
It’s clear how some of the behaviors associated with generational trauma could result in arrest. The specific number of jailed people who experience generational trauma is unknown. However, research consistently demonstrates a strong correlation between childhood trauma and incarceration.
Researchers have also found a relationship between mental health issues and incarceration, and addiction and incarceration.
Research shows that 32% of people who are incarcerated also had an incarcerated parent, showing how even incarceration can be normalized in families.
A study by the Prison Policy Initiative found that 17% of incarcerated parents spent time in foster care, 43% came from families that received public assistance, and 19% lived in public housing before they turned 18. All of these situations may relate to generational trauma.
The Role of Correctional Healthcare in Breaking the Cycle
Awareness of the levels of trauma of all kinds in jailed populations is essential, but it’s just the first step in addressing the issue. The next step is to use this information for action. Correctional healthcare can play a critical role in breaking the cycle of generational trauma.
To address generational trauma in jails:
- Learn to Recognize Trauma. The first step in addressing all types of trauma is learning to recognize it. All people entering jail should undergo standardized trauma screening and mental health evaluations as part of the intake process. This allows correctional staff and medical teams to identify people with significant trauma histories, prioritize those in need of immediate mental health support, and develop treatment plans.
- Provide Trauma-Informed Care. Providing trauma-informed care that recognizes the widespread impact of trauma and avoids re-traumatization is essential in correctional environments.
- Training on Responses. Once corrections officials and healthcare providers know trauma is present, they can better respond to it. Trauma-informed training equips staff with the tools to recognize trauma responses, communicate to minimize re-traumatization, and de-escalate conflicts.
- Teach Life Skills and Emotion Regulation. Empower jailed people with tools to respond to stress without violence or avoidance. Provide programs that teach emotional regulation, conflict resolution, and healthy communication. If programs are unavailable, model this behavior during engagement with providers and correctional staff.
- Expand Access. To truly support recovery, jails must provide accessible and consistent mental health care. This includes on-site access to licensed mental health professionals and regular therapy that employs a variety of trauma-specific modalities.
- Push for Policy Changes. To truly make a difference, policy must back trauma-informed care. Legislative and institutional changes should aim to divert people with mental health needs to treatment instead of incarceration and provide funding for mental health treatment in jails.
Generational Trauma and Jail
For people with generational trauma, the way they think, feel, and behave is normal to them, even if it doesn’t mesh with what others expect. Understanding generational trauma and how it shows up in the people who experience it may help providers give these people the help they need and deserve.
