"It Was Basically College to Us": Poverty, Prison, and Emerging Adulthood

Area of Science:

• Sociology
• Criminology
• Developmental Psychology

Background:

• Rising US incarceration rates disproportionately affect young African Americans during emerging adulthood.
• Imprisonment severely limits social, occupational, and civic opportunities crucial for this life stage.
• Neoliberal policies have led to diminished social welfare and increased socioeconomic disadvantage.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the meanings of incarceration for emerging adults within the context of the neoliberal era.
• To analyze paradoxically positive accounts of early prison experiences among young men and their partners.
• To understand how socioeconomic disadvantage shapes perceptions of the prison as a 'resource'.

Main Methods:

• In-depth interviews with young men recently released from state prison.
• Interviews with intimate partners of these formerly incarcerated young men.
• Theoretical framework integrating sociological ambivalence, sociological thriving, and amor fati.

Main Results:

• Young men and their partners sometimes offer paradoxically positive accounts of early prison experiences.
• These positive narratives emerge within a context of limited opportunities and socioeconomic disadvantage.
• The punitive institution is perceived as a 'resource' for social goods unavailable through other channels.

Conclusions:

• Incarceration narratives must be understood against a backdrop of reduced social welfare and intensified disadvantage.
• The prison functions as a shaping institution for individuals born into poverty during a critical life stage.
• Further research is needed to grasp the prison's dominant role in the lives of disadvantaged emerging adults.