My PhD research will take a trauma-informed and collaborative approach to explore the lived experiences of women with histories of self-harm and involvement in the criminal justice system. Although previous research has addressed some of the functions and motivations behind self-harm in the prison population, less is known about the impact of this post-release, especially for women. Due to the alarming and often increasing levels of self-harm observed, this research project is crucial to further understand how best to support women in the criminal justice system with recovery, rehabilitation, and reintegration into the community. This research will additionally consider the perspectives of staff with frontline experience managing self-harm on their caseloads.
