The family of a person admitted to a correctional facility can be a critical resource for information about that individual, and determining an individual's family situation may be fundamental to understanding his or her primary risks and needs during incarceration and after release. For example, family size may determine what kind of housing (e.g., apartment size) is needed by the individual upon release.

In many cases, the family is a victim of the offending behavior and/or its consequences. In addition to the possibility of direct victimization, family members may be affected emotionally or psychologically by the removal of a spouse or parent, or may endure a significant financial burden from the incarceration of a breadwinner. To the extent possible, intake staff should consider the risks and needs of the family as they are impacted by the incarceration of the individual family member, as well as the risks and needs of the individual.

Important areas for assessment include an inmate's family history and existing family supports, resources, and other issues, such as physical and mental health, education, vocational skills, employment, family violence, and criminal justice involvement. Administrators should seek to ensure that intake staff are appropriately trained to interact with families and to elicit relevant personal information. (See Recommendation n for additional discussion of training; see sidebar, "Asking the Right Questions," for examples of questions that may be used to determine key facts about the individual's conception of the family).

Family Genogram

Mapping tools can help to ensure that information is systematically obtained and documented. A genogram diagrams family history, identifying family members and other individuals that have a familial bond with the person in prison or jail (see chart, "A Family Genogram"). This visual tool helps inmates and family members to recognize strengths within their family, such as someone who has been steadily employed, and to confront issues that may recur across generations, such as criminal justice involvement or substance abuse. ^[1]  

The second tool, an ecomap, affords institutions broader assessment of resources available not only to the individual admitted to the correctional facility, but also to the family unit (see chart, "The Ecomap"). This tool illustrates government and community resources the family uses and characterizes the working relationships as well as any conflicts among those agencies. Ultimately, these mapping tools can help correctional institutions and other re-entry partners broaden institutional transition planning to include family and community resources, as well as government supports that already exist for an offender and his or her family unit. These analyses also lay the groundwork for identifying related government and community systems that routinely serve families who have a loved one in the justice system and for finding opportunities to share information or to integrate systems more broadly. (See Policy Statement 5, Promoting Systems Integration and Coordination, for more on ensuring that systems coordinate their service delivery to ensure both efficiency and full coverage of the populations they serve.)