The Experience of Women Serving Life Sentences

The number of women in prison is increasing, as is the number of women serving long-term sentences. From 2003 to 2004 the number of women serving time in prison grew from 100,384 to 103,310, an increase of 2.9 percent, while the number of men serving time in prison only increased 2.0 percent (Harrison & Beck, 2005). However, even though the number of prisoners is increasing, the amount of programming for female prisoners is not. Moreover, many of the existing programs, such as those that help prisoners cope with life in prison, have been designed for men, not women (Flanagan, 1995). In this research, stressors for women in prison serving life sentences, how they cope with these stressors, and programs that would facilitate coping with long-term incarceration will be explored.