AI Article Synopsis

  • Justice-involved individuals with mental illnesses face significant challenges, including high recidivism rates and additional risks like homelessness and unemployment, partly due to low social support.
  • An observational study using data from a mental health probation trial found that those with lower social support reported worse mental health symptoms and weaker relationships with probation officers.
  • Improving social support through coordinated services, peer support, and employment opportunities could enhance recovery and reduce negative outcomes for this demographic.

Article Abstract

Objective: Justice-involved people with mental illnesses, in general, experience poor criminal justice outcomes (i.e., high rates of recidivism and probation revocations) and are at increased risk of homelessness, unemployment, stigma, trauma, and poor physical health. Low social support is repeatedly associated with worse mental health outcomes in the general population but little is known about social support among probationers with serious mental illnesses.

Method: To address these gaps in the literature, we used an observational cross-sectional study design and data from a large, randomized controlled trial of specialty mental health probation to examine self-reported social support and its relationships with mental health functioning and other outcomes for individuals with serious mental illnesses on supervised probation.

Results: Probationers who self-reported lower levels of social support also reported greater mental health symptomatology and reported lower quality relationships with their probation officers.

Conclusions And Implications For Practice: Low social support among probationers with mental illnesses has important implications for mental health and criminal justice practice and policy. Coordinating services between the criminal justice and mental health systems to offer opportunities for social support and meaningful community engagement for those with mental illnesses who are on probation could improve a number of mental health and criminal justice outcomes for this population. Peer support and supported employment services, for example, in addition to outpatient mental health services, could be two strategies that could address social isolation and help individuals living with mental illnesses optimize their recovery and rehabilitation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/prj0000428DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

mental health
32
social support
28
mental illnesses
24
criminal justice
16
mental
15
health
9
social
8
people mental
8
illnesses probation
8
justice outcomes
8

Similar Publications

Plasma phosphorylated tau biomarkers open unprecedented opportunities for identifying carriers of Alzheimer's disease pathophysiology in early disease stages using minimally invasive techniques. Plasma p-tau biomarkers are believed to reflect tau phosphorylation and secretion. However, it remains unclear to what extent the magnitude of plasma p-tau abnormalities reflects neuronal network disturbance in the form of cognitive impairment.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Exploring the Credibility of Large Language Models for Mental Health Support: Protocol for a Scoping Review.

JMIR Res Protoc

January 2025

Data and Web Science Group, School of Business Informatics and Mathematics, University of Manneim, Mannheim, Germany.

Background: The rapid evolution of large language models (LLMs), such as Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT; Google) and GPT (OpenAI), has introduced significant advancements in natural language processing. These models are increasingly integrated into various applications, including mental health support. However, the credibility of LLMs in providing reliable and explainable mental health information and support remains underexplored.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Mental health concerns have become increasingly prevalent; however, care remains inaccessible to many. While digital mental health interventions offer a promising solution, self-help and even coached apps have not fully addressed the challenge. There is now a growing interest in hybrid, or blended, care approaches that use apps as tools to augment, rather than to entirely guide, care.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Psychologists have developed frameworks to understand many constructs, which have subsequently informed the design of digital mental health interventions (DMHIs) aimed at improving mental health outcomes. The science of happiness is one such domain that holds significant applied importance due to its links to well-being and evidence that happiness can be cultivated through interventions. However, as with many constructs, the unique ways in which individuals experience happiness present major challenges for designing personalized DMHIs.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!