Tweed, E. J. , Gounari, X. and Graham, L. (2021) Mental wellbeing among people in prison in Scotland: an analysis of repeat cross-sectional surveys. Journal of Public Health, 43(2), e188-e195. (doi: 10.1093/pubmed/fdz106) (PMID:31583401) (PMCID:PMC8185554)
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Abstract
Background: Mental wellbeing among people in prison is poorly studied, despite featuring in many health and justice policies. We aimed to describe for the first time mental wellbeing among an unselected national prison sample. Methods: Since 2013, the Scottish Prisoner Survey—a biennial survey of people in custody in Scotland—has included the Warwick-Edinburgh mental wellbeing scale (WEMWBS), a 14-item scale with higher scores indicating greater wellbeing. We analysed data from sweeps in 2013 (n = 3158), 2015 (n = 2892) and 2017 (n = 2405) using Student’s t-test, ANOVA and multiple linear regression. We also used WEMWBS data from the Scottish Health Survey stratified by age, gender and deprivation to compare with the population at liberty. Results: Mean WEMWBS scores overall were 43.4 in 2013 (SD = 12.2), 41.8 (SD = 11.9) in 2015 and 41.2 (SD = 12.3) in 2017. Mean scores were lower among people on remand and with multiple prison episodes. Age-standardized mean scores were lower among people in prison than their peers at liberty. Conclusions: Poor mental wellbeing is an important, under-studied facet of the extreme health inequalities associated with imprisonment. These results identify that people on remand or with multiple episodes are particularly disadvantaged and provide a baseline for monitoring impacts of service or policy interventions.
| Item Type: | Articles |
|---|---|
| Status: | Published |
| Refereed: | Yes |
| Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: | Graham, Dr Lesley and Tweed, Dr Emily |
| Authors: | Tweed, E. J., Gounari, X., and Graham, L. |
| College/School: | College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Health & Wellbeing > MRC/CSO SPHSU |
| Journal Name: | Journal of Public Health |
| Publisher: | Oxford University Press |
| ISSN: | 1741-3842 |
| ISSN (Online): | 1741-3850 |
| Published Online: | 04 October 2019 |
| Copyright Holders: | Copyright © 2019 The Authors |
| First Published: | First published in Journal of Public Health 43(2): e188-e195 |
| Publisher Policy: | Reproduced under a Creative Commons License |
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