Abstract
Background
Many variables can influence the process of motherhood, including environmental precarity and personal adversity. One about which little is known is the impact of incarceration on women during or after pregnancy. In France, pregnant women or those with children up to 18 months old can be incarcerated with their child in specific units called nurseries. We sought to explore incarcerated women’s experience of motherhood in prison environments and its potential consequences on the construction of their identity as mothers.
Method
We conducted semi-structured interviews to collect the experience of the process of motherhood among 25 mothers and 5 pregnant women in 13 different prison nurseries in France and used interpretative phenomenological analysis to explore the data.
Results
Four different themes emerged: prison conflates their status as inmates and as mothers; it limits their freedom as mothers; it disrupts their family structure; and motherhood may help distinguish them from other inmates.
Conclusion
Incarceration of pregnant women or young mothers in prison nurseries might disrupt the process involved in becoming mothers, causing their identities as prisoners to englobe their identities as mothers and resulting in inappropriate parenting support by prison staff. A professional specialized in peripartum issues should help each woman disentangle her identity as inmate and mother and enable her placement at the facility best adapted to her individual needs as a mother. In any case, if prison must continue to be possible, it must always be a last alternative for women with young children.
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Data availability
All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article and tables.
Notes
Instruction intérministérielle N° DGS/SP/DGOS/DSS/DGCS/DAP/DPJJ/2017/345, 2017.
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Funding
This research was jointly supported by grants from the Mustela Foundation and from the French West Indies University and the Harriet Hale Woolley Scholarship.
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AO and JL conceptualized and designed the study, designed the data collection instruments, collected the data, carried out the initial analyses, drafted the initial manuscript, and reviewed and revised the manuscript. MRM conceptualized and designed the study, coordinated and supervised data collection, and critically reviewed the manuscript for important intellectual content. All authors approved the final manuscript as submitted and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.
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This study was approved by the ethics committee CER-PARIS DESCARTES (CER 2018–108, 19/01/2019). Consent to participate: All participants have given their consent to participate. Consent for publication: All participants have given their consent for publication.
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Ogrizek, A., Lachal, J. & Moro, M.R. The Process of Becoming a Mother in French Prison Nurseries: A Qualitative Study. Matern Child Health J 26, 367–380 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-021-03254-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-021-03254-9