Increasing Self-Compassion in Prison Populations
Loading...
Authors
Nowelle, Esther
Issue Date
2025-05-01
Type
Capstone
Language
en
Keywords
compassion-focused therapy , coping strategies , restorative justice , self-compassion , trauma-informed care
Alternative Title
Abstract
This capstone project explores the literature on increased self-compassion in incarcerated individuals. Adults in the penal system with intersecting identities, a history of trauma, and the development of maladaptive coping skills are negatively impacted by the facilities in which they are held. Indigenous people are severely impacted due to the lack of culturally sensitive programming, which ultimately perpetuates systemic harms and hindrances to accessing traditional Indigenous healing and teachings. This capstone explores the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions like animal companionship, peer-led mutual support groups, restorative justice programming, and compassion-focused therapy to enhance self-compassion among prison populations. The findings of this literature review indicate that programs incorporating compassion-based interventions delivered through a trauma-informed lens show promising results when integrated into correctional therapeutic programming. These findings indicate the importance of a humanistic, trauma-informed, compassionate approach when working with those who are incarcerated.
Description
Citation
Publisher
License
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
openAccess
openAccess