In the company of animals: Accompaniment transforms prisoners into colleagues, teachers, and healers.

Abstract

The setting is a high-security state prison inhabited by over 2,300 men labeled as "violent," often having decades before access to the privilege of parole. Over 400 of these men have life without parole. This particular prison is surrounded by a national forest. We begin by describing current problems in corrections to introduce the difficulties facing not only these prisoners themselves, but also the psychologists tasked with rehabilitating them. A serendipitous discovery found that photographs of dogs and nonhuman forest animals opened communication between prisoner and nonprisoner. Then, the story of traumatized adolescent elephants led to prisoners' willingness to discuss their vulnerabilities. Eventually, several of the prisoners began to relate as colleagues, as professional equals, by taking the initiative to engage in healing activities such as composing effective therapeutic materials-featuring animals-to share among themselves in a process that became known in the prison as Elephants in the Forest. Scenarios from the prison, along with the literature supporting how these transformative approaches may work, are presented and discussed. Consistent with what psychological theory and data predict, attachment-based, trauma-informed, nature-grounded accompaniment provided foundational support for mutual transformation in both prisoner and psychologist. Designing and implementing such training and programs are recommended as vital for the success of prisoners and society-at-large rehabilitation.

Inside of a prison: How a culture of punishment prevents rehabilitation.

“…It is necessary to provide empathy and compassion to heal the traumatized (Schore, 2019). In over 8 years’ experience working with men who were considered to be the most violent in a statewide prison population, we found that providing a trustworthy presence via attachment-based psychotherapy (Costello, 2013) and accompaniment (Watkins, 2015), while embedded in a nature-based culture, was effective in transforming prisoners (Bloom et al, 2021; Bradshaw & Bloom, 2020). Therefore, it appears that the problem in corrections is the delivery of rehabilitative content, and not the content itself.…”

“…Such catastrophic failures in other public sectors would trigger rigorous problem analysis and reassessment, resulting in subsequent demands for alternative approaches (Whitely et al, 2014). When viewed through the lens of psychological theory and data, the source of failure in prison rehabilitation efforts unveils (Bloom et al, 2021; Bradshaw & Bloom, 2020; Garbarino, 2017; Roach, 2013).…”

“…The best program content cannot be effective without organizational cultural change that supports this essential transformation. When such change happens, prisoners’ past emotional wounds can be healed (Bloom et al, 2021; Bradshaw & Bloom, 2020).…”

Come to kale: Accompaniment across barriers of species and situations.

“…One prisoner began to draw elephants to share during groups (see Appendix). He has also coauthored an article with us in which some of his stories are presented (Bloom et al, 2020).…”

“…Another prisoner with a 30-year maximum (15-year minimum) sentence wrote nature-based materials for group programs. His rendering of the animal accounts, told from the animal’s perspectives, helped prisoners develop empathy for others (Bloom et al, 2020). This nature- and attachment-based, trauma-informed approach effectively transformed prisoners into collaborating colleagues.…”