Incarcerated Loved Ones: Building a Community to Support and Advocate on Facebook

Abstract

Individuals with an incarcerated loved one are often overlooked when discussing the impacts of incarceration. It can be difficult for these individuals to navigate the criminal justice system, as well as form meaningful connections and obtain support from others that are experiencing a similar situation. Social media allows for connections to be made between individuals in similar situations that might not be geographically close to one another. Specifically, for those with an incarcerated loved one, the Facebook group “Incarcerated Loved Ones” allows for meaningful connection to others who are navigating incarceration. Posts were collected from this Facebook group, with the themes emerging including COVID, information seeking, and advocacy. Findings, as well as future directions, will be discussed.