Impacts of childhood trauma in prisons

What is it about?

Experiencing trauma in childhood, such as being victim of abuse or witnessing family violence has important impacts on adult behaviour. Childhood trauma is common in prison populations. We show that prisoners who experienced childhood trauma are more likely to have mental health and substance abuse needs in childhood and to engage in violence while in prisons.

Featured Image

Why is it important?

Our findings highlight the multiple complex needs of prisoners who experienced childhood trauma. These should be the targets of programs to help prisoners live healthier and violence-free lives. From a prevention standpoint, it highlights the need for early interventions for children who experience trauma to prevent the development of adult substance abuse, mental health needs and criminal behaviour.