Parental imprisonment can cause many problems for the family left behind,
including difficulty organising childcare, loss of family income, trouble maintaining
contact with the imprisoned parent, stigma, and home, school and neighbourhood
moves. Children and parents can be distressed by the separation. Children may
respond by acting out or becoming withdrawn, anxious or depressed. We conducted
an exhaustive search for studies that examined children's antisocial behaviour and
mental health after parental imprisonment. We found 16 studies with appropriate
evidence. These studies all showed that children of prisoners are more likely than
other children to show antisocial and mental health problems. However, it was
unclear whether parental imprisonment actually caused these problems. They might
have been caused by other disadvantages in children's lives that existed before
parental imprisonment occurred. Children of prisoners are a vulnerable group. More
research is required to determine whether or not parental imprisonment causes an
increase in child antisocial behaviour and mental health problems
