ABSTRACT
Case workers involved in permanency planning for children whose mothers are incarcerated must assess the family's strengths, the mother's capacity to assume parental responsibilities, and the integrity of the parent-child relationship; and address concerns regarding the short- and long-term effects of the children's socioemotional dislocation and the merits of their retaining a relationship with their mothers. Constraints on an incarcerated mother's ability to plan and prepare for her postrelease life have long presented formidable challenges for case planning. Constraints on the case worker's ability to maintain contact with the mother, whether in the form of visits, telephone calls, or correspondence, are also troublesome. Often children feel somehow responsible for their mother's incarceration or cultivate what may be unrealistic fantasies of what their family life will be like when their mother is released. Clearly, diligent inquiry and assessment are needed to avoid faulty decisions and actions.
