Paving Paths Toward Transformation With Incarcerated Women (original) (raw)

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to elicit the experiences of women who participated in a gender-responsive program in jail. Results indicate the holistic programming and learning environment was an emancipatory container where transformation could occur through interpersonal and intrapersonal engagement. Findings have implications for the education of incarcerated women. In the past three decades the number of women who are incarcerated in the U.S. has increased dramatically. The rates of incarcerated women continue to climb at a steady pace and have been increasing at a rate 50 percent higher than men since 1980 (The Sentencing Project, 2013). Researchers note that women's pathways to prison often include histories of victimization including incest, rape, intimate partner abuse, and drug abuse and/or addiction (Bloom, 2003; McDaniels-Wilson & Belknap 2008). Poor women of color who are mothers of minor children face greater risk of incarceration due to the interlocking oppressive forces of racism, classism, and sexism (Chesney-Lind & Pasko, 2004; Crenshaw, 2012). Given the historical focus on male offenders in criminology, there are limited offerings of gender-responsive educational programming (GRP) for women inmates and this lack of appropriate intervention may negatively impact women's recovery from histories of mental and physical abuse and addiction, which oftentimes leads to recidivism (Belknap, 2007; Wright, Van Voorhis, Salisbury, & Bauman, 2012). The few studies concerning gender responsive programming for incarcerated women have shown that women who participate are less likely to be incarcerated after being released and GRPs significantly helped women reduce their drug use over time (Messina, Grella, Cartier & Torres, 2010; White, 2012). Resolana is one of the few programs for women that offered holistic, gender-responsive programming to women in a county jail. Gender responsive programming has the potential to foster transformative learning. Transformative learning occurs when individuals experience a "disorienting dilemma" (Mezirow & Associates, 2000, p. 22) that ultimately causes a change in worldview, which is a common experience for many women inmates. There are few researchers who have evaluated genderresponsive programming for incarcerated women and the women's experiences have not been explored. Transformative learning has been analyzed in other contexts such as support groups (Hoagland, 2000); however, the fostering of transformative learning in a jail context has received little attention. An investigation into how transformative learning is cultivated in this context could expand the extant literature on this topic. Given the lack of analysis of women's experiences with gender-responsive programming in jails, the purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of women who attended Resolana. Specifically we wanted to know: (1) How does the program foster transformative learning? (2) What effect does the program have on participants' thinking, feeling, and behavior? Literature Review Gender-responsive programming recognizes women's common pathways to incarceration, including the influences of systemic race, class, and gender oppression on their

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