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Journal Article 1: Blackburn, A. G., Mullings, J. L., & Marquart, J. W. (2008). Sexual assault in prison and beyond: Toward an understanding of lifetime sexual assault among incarcerated women. The Prison Journal, 88, 351–377. DOI:10.1177/0012885508322443

Abstract: Although several studies have examined consensual sexual activity in female correctional institutions, there has been little research conducted on in-prison sexual assault among incarcerated females. The present study examines 436 female inmates in a large Southern prison system and explores demographic characteristics as predictors of sexual victimization. Of the women in the sample, 68.4% reported lifetime sexual victimization, and 17.2% reported in-prison sexual victimization. Consistent with previous research, 3.0% of the entire sample reported being the victim of a completed prison rape. Significant demographic predictors were revealed for lifetime sexual victimization but not for in-prison sexual victimization. Implications for correctional policy based on research findings are discussed.

Journal Article 2: Brown, M., & Bloom, B. (2009). Reentry and renegotiating motherhood: Maternal identity and success on parole. Crime & Delinquency, 55, 313–336. DOI:10.1177/0011128708330627

Abstract: Parenting women emerging from prison on parole face numerous challenges to their successful reentry into the community. Along with finding housing, employment, and satisfying the conditions of their supervision, parenting women must also reassume their roles as mothers. This article adds to the literature on reentry by placing women's maternal concerns at the forefront of this process. Combining quantitative explorations of women's parole case files (203) with in-depth interviews (25), this research demonstrates that reentering mothers confront many of the same problems that mediated their incarceration: poverty, lack of education, unstable housing, lack of access to social services, underemployment, and addiction. While the maternal role may constitute a conventional identity “script” for these ex-inmates and motivate their success on parole, the challenges they face that impact their childrearing before prison make reassuming their maternal roles a precarious enterprise. Recommendations for gender-responsive policies and programs are provided.