Coping Strategies of the Family Members of Convicted People

Abstract

The phenomenon of convict affects not only the individual who is sentenced to prison, but also his family. Families experiencing various problems due to the absence of the person or being "convicted" develop various strategies in order to cope with the problems they experience. In this study, it is aimed to reveal the strategies of coping with the problems experienced by the families of convicts after the person's conviction. In the research, in which the qualitative research method was used, the phenomenological approach was used and the participants of the research were reached through purposeful sampling. In-depth interviews were conducted with 17 convicted spouses (14 women, 3 men) who are convicted and currently in the penitentiary institution. The coping styles of families are discussed under three sub-headings: (i) psychosocial, (ii) economic and (iii) coping strategies with the problems arising from the execution process. In coping with psychosocial problems; It is seen that the love of the participants for their spouses and their belief that they should stand strong because they have children are a strong source of motivation, and families try to overcome this process with gratitude or religious belief. The effect of family and social support is important and the experience experienced In the face of stigma and social exclusion, the prisoner situation is usually hidden from the environment or some of the families move/immigrate to hide the situation. Female participants who experience economic problems more deeply in coping with the economic problems of their families; It is noteworthy that after the conviction of their spouses, they try to make do with what they have, that they or their children start working, and that they continue their lives with the support of their spouses or root families, or with social assistance. It is seen that the strategies of the participants to cope with the problems arising from the execution process are shaped within the framework of the finding alternatives for transportation to the penitentiary institutions and the explanations of the searches made for children during the execution process. Another important finding of the study is that families adopt emotion-focused coping strategies in line with their own capacity and conditions at the point of coping with the problems they experience, and have problems in accessing professional support-services.