O Papel dos Relacionamentos Amorosos no Encarceramento: Uma Revisão Narrativa.

Abstract

The population of inmates has been growing and the study of them has stood out in the field of psychology since the late 1990s (Comfort, 2007), when the rate of incarceration reached unprecedented proportions (Comfort, 2007). However, only recently have romantic relationships been analysed in the prison context, even though the scarce literature highlights the importance of romantic relationships, as they seem to be a great source of emotional support, mental well-being and hope in the face of the difficulties faced by imprisoned men and women, as well as contributing to their successful re-entry into society. With this work we intend to delve deeper into this subject by carrying out a narrative review of how research has studied love relationships in a context in which people live, characterised by forced separations and a lack of resources, and, also what means and resources couples use to (re)build and/or maintain emotional ties. To this end, we analysed articles from 2015, which addressed both the perspective of prisoners and the perspective of their partners. The main results show that imprisonment adds pressure and solidifies pre-existing tensions in relationships, which may lead them to end. In other cases, paradoxically, imprisonment becomes an opportunity to maintain and even build relationships. Prisoners and their partners use the means of contact provided by the prison system (letters, visits and phone calls) to negotiate their relationships and expand their capacity to fulfil their romantic roles, challenging the concepts of physical separation. The negative effects of incarceration seem to extend beyond prison, primarily impacting the partners, who despite not having been convicted, suffer from a parallel sentence, demarcated by feelings of loneliness, isolation, stress and stigma. The literature review also addresses the limitations of research in this field, namely the fact that studies have small samples, a lack of longitudinal studies and little focus on LGBT+ relationships, as well as methodologies that delve into the impact of romantic relationships on the long-term behaviour of incarcerated individuals and the role of institutional support systems in maintaining romantic ties. Keywords: prison, inmates, romantic relationships, emotional relationships, rehabilitation, recidivism.