Parents "Inside". Incarceration, Family Relationships and Educational Challenges

What conditions are needed to continue parenting while undergoing the experience of detention? How is parental bonding nurtured while experiencing punishment and restriction? In this paper, we would like to shed light on some of the issues surrounding the debate on parenting in prison, in light of theoretical reflections and face - to-face meetings with detained mothers and fathers who are rethinking their experience. Parental bonding is fundamental for the psycho - affective development of children: the affective dimensions may not necessarily be related to the crime committed and the respective sentence. On the other hand, however, from an educational point of view it is necessary to guide parents and children who experience the suffering and separation of imprisonment differently, in order to give a name and meaning to what they are living, mitigate the traumatic aspects and enhance the reflective dimensions. Moreover, the need to work on a systemic level, in terms of rights, social ties, and psycho-pedagogical intervention is highlighted.