Content Analysis of PsychArticles Database: Representation of People Previously Incarcerated

Abstract

No research has investigated the trends examining people who have been previously incarcerated within psychological literature. This study has aimed to investigate the research on people who have previously been incarcerated published within PsychArticles database. There were a total of 79 articles selected for this study, and the vast majority used quantitative methodologies. Additionally, there appeared to be a significant difference in the number of articles representing women compared to men, and the vast majority of articles did not utilize person first language and instead identified participants by their offense type or history of incarceration. Lastly, ideas related to the disproportionate representation of specific offenses within the articles used for this study compared to actual incarceration rates of offenses are discussed.