International experience suggests that the conscious management of trauma can significantly reduce conflicts and violent incidents in prisons. A new study by researchers at ELTE PPK sets out the theoretical basis for this and explores its practical applications.
The behaviour of prisoners and their prospects for reintegration are often shaped by past traumas that are not always apparent in the day-to-day running of the prison system. In their study, co-authored by PhD candidate Zsuzsanna Koday and her supervisor, Zsuzsa Kaló, an associate professor with a habilitation at ELTE’s Faculty of Education and Psychology, they seek to answer how a trauma-informed approach can be integrated into the workings of the prison system, and what impact this might have on the daily lives of prisoners and within the institutions themselves.
The study's background
The authors’ starting point is that a significant proportion of prisoners suffer from some form of serious psychological trauma.
For this reason, the research examines how neurobiological knowledge can be incorporated into staff training, and how the social and psychological effects of trauma can be integrated into day-to-day practice.
A feltárás gerincét az Amerikai Egyesült Államok Kábítószerügyi és Mentális Egészségügyi Szolgáltatások Kormányzati Igazgatósága (SAMHSA) által meghatározott alapfogalmak és azok alkalmazási lehetőségei, valamint szakirodalmi áttekintés adta.
The „4 R” model
Interventions organised according to a trauma-informed approach are based on the sharing of information and knowledge relating to trauma, and their primary tool is trauma-informed group counselling, which is based on partnership – and is psychoeducational for both clients and service providers.
The intervention identifies four key areas for institutions that are essential for effective intervention – this is known as the ‘4 R’ model, namely realisation, recognition, response and resistance to re-traumatisation.
The first pillar of this approach is organisation-wide training covering all staff, which establishes a shared knowledge base regarding trauma. The second step facilitates the practical identification of trauma symptoms through regular supervision, ongoing monitoring and programme evaluation. The third element recommends the implementation of trauma-informed principles in institutional protocols, procedures and organisational culture, whilst the fourth warns that interventions may unintentionally bring to the surface patients’ previous negative experiences and, in the absence of trauma awareness, may re-traumatise them.
The case of female prisoners
The validity of this approach is borne out by the profound trauma experienced by prisoners – and women in particular. Drawing on international data, the study highlights the strikingly high prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), childhood abuse and various mental and physical health problems amongst this group. Analyses from the United Kingdom, for example, show that nearly a third of female prisoners were brought up in state care, and more than half experienced childhood abuse – moreover, two-thirds of female prisoners affected by PTSD were also victims of sexual abuse as children.
A safer institutional environment
Research confirms that a trauma-informed approach to the prison system not only increases the success of reintegration, but also directly reduces disciplinary offences and internal conflicts amongst prisoners, creating a more humane and supportive prison environment. The application of these methods has yielded convincing results:
the number of attacks on staff fell by 62 per cent, violence amongst prisoners by 54 per cent, and the suicide rate by 60 per cent, whilst the incidence of mental health problems also fell by a third.
The study was supported by the Hungarian Prison Service, which provided the opportunity to carry out the research. The full study is available in Hungarian in issue 2026/2 of Börtönügyi Szemle via this link.