How Women are Bearing the Burden of Rehabilitation: Understanding the Experiences and Support Needs of Women Whose Partner has an Offending History

How Women are Bearing the Burden of Rehabilitation: Understanding the Experiences and Support Needs of Women Whose Partner has an Offending History

When a person has engaged in a number of illegal activities, it can be difficult to access the resources needed to change their behaviour. When they do begin to live a law-abiding life, academics have named the process ‘desistance’, and it refers to the development of a crime-free life characterised by well-being, good relationships and a positive sense of self.

Desistance has experienced increasing attention over the years, with its inclusion in government policy cementing its acknowledged role in the reducing offending agenda. A page on Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation website for example highlights general desistance practice principles and states that research has demonstrated the need for people desisting to ‘develop positive relationships – individuals are influenced to change by those whose advice they respect and whose support they value’.

What is not acknowledged by desistance research or policy however, is how the expectation of support frequently falls to informal relations, often women, to provide the social capital and other resources required to embark upon and maintain the desistance process. With 79,514 people in prison in England and Wales in 2020, the stresses of supporting a partner in challenging financial times are wide-reaching and constitute an oversight which could contribute to poorer relationships and therefore weaker desistance outcomes.

Research conducted by Dr Lauren Hall and Dr Lyndsey Harris, at the height of the pandemic, involved the completion of 6 online interviews with women whose partners are, or had been, desisting from crime. The data showed how even when women received support, trust and communication from their partner, the areas of their lives which experienced strain as a result of supporting their partner were numerous. Managing feelings of guilt, the weighted expectations of hope and navigating impacted familial relations all took a toll. Distinctly, the gendered impact of supporting a desisting partner also affected maintenance of the home, childcare and could also impact on women’s sense of self as a ‘successful’ partner and woman. As ‘Lucy’ explained to us:

“If he went out and committed another crime, am I not worth that desistance? Am I not worth turning around and saying, this is not worth losing my girlfriend and my kids over? Why is this family not worth it? And that is probably what I will struggle with the most if he chooses to reoffend”

‘Lucy’

The barriers associated with prison visits, including the financial implications of maintaining contact, were also emphasised for women whose partners were incarcerated at time of interview.

We have therefore conceptualised support provision by partners of desisters as a form of Desistance Emotional Work (DEW) which is uniquely shaped and experienced in line with the desistance process. The investment of DEW, when shared between partners and when desistance was maintained, returned the joy of shared relational strengths, but could damage or deplete the women’s resources when desistance lapsed or ended entirely. Even when relationships were positive, the investment of DEW by women could still cause strain on emotional and financial resources as a result of criminal justice contact.

Understanding how to ease the burden of DEW for women will help to ensure that desistance policy and practice is reciprocally beneficial relationally and could also help to prevent criminal justice system contact for women in this position. Some women whose partners do not desist can become involved in illegal activities as a direct result of their intimate relationship, indeed ‘Nearly half of women prisoners (48%) report having committed offences to support someone else’s drug use, compared to 22% of male prisoners’ (Prison Reform Trust, 2017). Ensuring that investment of DEW creates positive, reciprocal relationships for both partners should consequently enhance desistance prospects.

If policy is to promote the role of relationships in desistance, we must ensure desistance support is readily available for women whose families are affected by the criminal justice system, and which understands the challenges they face.  To keep up with our ongoing work in the area, follow @BonDSforChange on Twitter and keep an eye out for our website, launching soon.

Sources:

Prison Reform Trust

Desistance – General Practice Principles

More Information:

Dr Lauren Hall

Dr Lyndsey Harris