Reported Head Injury and Disciplinary Rule Infractions in Prison

Merbitz, Charles T.; Jain, Santosh; Good, Leslie; Bs, Ada Jain

doi:10.1300/j076v22n03_02

Cited by 24 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…The rate of TBI among incarcerated populations is of special concern as it appears to be higher than the rate found in the general population (CDC, n.d.; Diamond et al, 2007). The available research on the topic also suggests that incarcerated individuals with TBI have poorer institutional and community outcomes (Merbitz et al, 1995;) and a variety of cognitive impairments including executive dysfunction (Stuss & Gow, 1992;Spikman et al, 2000), memory deficits, attention problems, and processing speed deficits (Hannay et al, 2004). Most of the TBI corrections research has focused on its relationship to violent behavior as a result of community safety and policy concerns (Rosenbaum et al, 1994;Leon-Carrion & Ramos, 2003).…”

Section: Chapter Five Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most studies have identified rates of TBI in their samples that are much higher than what is found in the general population, though many methodological issues-such as small samples or representativeness of samples-make the existing research difficult to generalize (Diamond, Wang, Holzer III, Thomas, & Cruser, 2001). Further, the research suggests incarcerated individuals with TBI have poorer institutional and community outcomes than those with no history of TBI (Bryant, Scott, Golden & Tori, 1984;Rosenbaum et al, 1994;Merbitz, Jain, Good, & Jain, 1995).…”

Section: Overview Of the Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, far less research has examined other cognitive and emotional sequelae of TBI among incarcerated adults, though emotional adjustment problems and mental health issues have been found to be more prevalent among those with TBI (Sarapata, Herrmann, Johnson, Aycock, 1998;Schofield et al, 2006). A number of sequelae beyond an increase in violent behavior have been found among justice-involved individuals with TBI: executive dysfunction (Marsh & Martinovich, 2006); generally poorer cognitive functioning (Sarapata et al, 1998); institutional adjustment problems (Merbitz et al, 1995); and a higher level of risk upon return to the community (Hawley & Maden, 2003).…”

Section: Overview Of the Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other research has investigated general criminal activity, cognitive functioning, emotional adjustment, (Sarapata et al, 1998), executive functioning (Cohen et al, 1999), institutional adjustment (Merbitz et al, 1995;, and the neuropsychiatric correlates of impairment (Schofield et al, 2006;Slaughter et al, 2003) as they relate to TBI. It is important to note that there are some key differences between the type of research looking at TBI in correctional and offender populations and the general TBI research that may contribute to the focus on TBI in relation to violence.…”

Section: Implications Of Tbi In Offender Populationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In terms of institutional adjustment, research has shown that offenders with head injury receive significantly more disciplinary infractions while incarcerated (Merbitz et al, 1995;. Offenders with mental disorders and a history of head injury have also been assessed to be a significantly greater risk to themselves and others upon release (Hawley & Maden, 2003).…”

Section: Implications Of Tbi In Offender Populationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Traumatic Brain Injury and Executive Functioning in an Incarcerated Sample

Bernett¹,

Diamond²,

Melchert³

et al. 2013

PsycEXTRA Dataset

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TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY AND EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING IN AN INCARCERATED SAMPLEAbigail A. Bernett, M.A.Marquette University, 2012 Incarcerated adults in the United States represent a significant segment of the population, and traumatic brain injury (TBI) in incarcerated populations has been identified as an area of public health concern. However, not much is known about it because research investigating TBI in incarcerated populations has focused primarily on its relationship to violent behavior. The existing research suggests that a history of TBI may be related to later violent behavior, criminal activity, mental health problems, and poorer institutional and community adjustment. Further, some of the cognitive deficits found in the general population following TBI, including executive dysfunction, have also been found in incarcerated populations. The purpose of the current study was to address a gap in the research by examining the relationship between TBI and executive functioning in a sample of adults incarcerated in the Federal Prison System. The study aimed to describe the neurocognitive functioning of the sample in the domains of IQ, executive functioning, verbal memory, attention, and motor skills. Further, hypotheses based on the theory of cognitive reserve were tested regarding the relationships between TBI, executive functioning, and institution behavior. Overall, the sample demonstrated average performance across the majority of cognitive domains tested. The range of scores in all domains spanned from profound impairment to superior performance. Multivariate analysis of variance was used to look for differences in executive functioning across varying levels of TBI severity, though no significant difference was found. Regression analyses found that lower cognitive reserve was associated with lower executive functioning, though structural equation modeling did not support a relationship between executive functioning and subsequent institutional behavior. Caveats in interpreting test scores, particularly in the domain of executive functioning, are discussed, along with possible explanations for differences in cognitive functioning across incarcerated subgroups. Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended that correctional institutions increase screening and cognitive testing of individuals who present with risk factors for possible executive dysfunction (e.g., history of violent offenses, TBI) in order to better classify the inmate population. Further, individualized treatment and the incorporation of programming that specifically targets executive dysfunction are recommended.

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