Beyond loss of liberty: how loss, bereavement and grief can affect young men's prison journeys

Drawing on the research literature, this chapter adopts a broad conceptualisation of loss, encompassing bereavement as well as the full range of more ambiguous losses. The role that loss, bereavement and, in turn, grief can play in the journey to, through and from custody is discussed. The chapter begins by outlining how the nature and experience of loss, bereavement and grief in childhood can affect young men's behaviour and ultimately lead to involvement in offending. The chapter will then explore how institutional responses to offending, such as the use of residential care, secure care or custody often amplifies or creates additional losses, and also how the institutional context itself can significantly affect young men’s ability to cope with loss and grief. The impact that these losses have on young men's self-concept and the practical and perceptual barriers that exist for personal change, social reintegration and desistance are discussed.