Relational Spirituality and Maternal Coping in Carceral Contexts: A Participatory Action Study of Meaning-Making and Mental Health Among Formerly Incarcerated Mothers

<p>Maternal incarceration carries significant psychological, familial, and community consequences, yet limited research centers the mental health experiences of mothers themselves. This study explored how religious and spiritual engagement shape mental health and coping among formerly incarcerated mothers using a participatory action research framework. Guided by this, small groups and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 mothers in collaboration with a community-based organization. This approach prioritized lived experience and aimed to reduce barriers to participation among a population often mistrustful of research institutions. Data were analyzed thematically to identify patterns in psychological distress, coping strategies, and meaning-making. Findings revealed pervasive and enduring distress shaped by trauma histories, maternal separation, and carceral conditions. Participants described multiple coping strategies, with relational, peer-based, and spiritual supports, particularly sisterhoods formed with other incarcerated mothers, emerging as central. These relationships enabled shared emotional processing, fostering endurance and resilience rather than symptom resolution. Participants also emphasized the importance of being recognized as individuals, highlighting trust as critical to both support-seeking and research engagement. This study underscores the importance of centering mothers’ voices in incarceration research and suggests that religious, relational, and community-based coping play a vital role in maternal mental health, with implications for clinical practice and future research.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Psychology

Year dc:date.available

2026

Author dc:creator

• Peters, Jessica

Contributors dc:contributor

• Ann Marie Yali

• Maternal incarceration
• religion and spirituality
• coping
• mental health
• spiritual coping
• qualitative research
• Community-Based Research
• Community Psychology
• Religion
• Social Psychology

Repository record dc:identifier

https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cc_etds_theses/1321

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:academicworks.cuny.edu:cc_etds_theses-2436