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Soledad Women: Wives of Prisoners Speak Out

NCJ Number
163352
Author(s)
L B Girshick
Date Published
1996
Length
143 pages
Annotation
The wife of an inmate at a California prison has researched the special problems faced by women whose spouses are incarcerated, and she notes that families bear the emotional and financial impact of having a loved one incarcerated.
Abstract
Unlike victim families, inmate families are not viewed with sympathy or compassion. Rather, they are viewed as suspect, perhaps as equally guilty of the crime, due to their relationship with the offender. The lives of wives, children, and parents are dramatically changed due to the offender's behavior, and the adjustments they must make under difficult odds are rarely portrayed in the news or understood by the public. Loss of a family member through incarceration is different from loss through separation by other means. The author highlights the impact of male incarceration on the "free" family, with emphasis primarily on wives or girlfriends and secondarily on children. Consideration is paid to marital roles, family relationships, and the role of women in relationship maintenance. The study is based on participant observation and indepth interviewing of 25 wives of inmates at a California prison in 1986. Differences between male and female incarceration and gender role socialization are examined, the secret lives of inmate wives and the sigma they experience are discussed, and the effect of male incarceration on family finances is assessed. The author also looks at how wives feel about visiting room conditions and rules at the prison, problems faced by wives in dealing with the prison system, and the role of wives in their husbands' rehabilitation. Appendixes contain the study questionnaire, a followup survey summary, and additional information on the author's research experience. 146 references