Individuals serving a prison sentence: traumatic experiences, post-traumatic stress, and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help

Introduction. Providing effective support for individuals at risk of committing crimes and those who have already offended requires understanding their challenges and attitudes toward psychological help. This study examined the associations between traumatic experiences, post-traumatic stress, and attitudes toward seeking psychological help among incarcerated individuals. Methods. Participants were adults, both male (n = 245 (80.9%)) and female (n = 58 (19.1%)) serving prison sentences in seven Lithuanian prisons. The questionnaire included sociodemographic questions, the Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help, Short Form (ATSPPH-SF), the Life Events Checklist-Revised (LEC-R), and the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R). Univariate and bivariate statistical analyses were conducted. Results. Traumatic experiences were significantly associated (p < 0.05) with a higher number of prison sentences (p = 0.025) and visits to mental health professionals both in prison (p < 0.001) and outside (p < 0.001). Only 2 out of 19 traumatic experiences – traffic accidents and abduction, hostage situations, or being a prisoner of war – were not significantly related to sociodemographic variables. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) risk was identified in 43.4% of participants. Gender (p = 0.001) and visits to mental health professionals in prison (p = 0.003) significantly predicted PTSD symptoms. Most participants had a positive attitude toward seeking professional psychological help (mean = 18.38; SD ± 5.33), which was influenced by age (p = 0.014) and previous visits to mental health professionals (p < 0.001). Traumatic experiences, PTSD symptoms, and attitudes toward psychological help were interrelated. Mediation analysis revealed statistically significant relationships between these variables (p < 0.05). Specifically, attitudes toward seeking psychological help mediated the association between traumatic experiences and PTSD symptoms, suggesting that a more positive attitude toward psychological services may influence the psychological impact of trauma. Conclusions. Traumatic experiences, PTSD symptoms, and attitudes toward seeking psychological help were significantly associated among incarcerated individuals.