Participants will gain an understanding of how children’s earliest experiences and the quality of their attachment to primary caregivers impact their ability to:
- Feel safe in the world
- Regulate emotions
- Trust others
- Learn and thrive
- Enjoy positive relationships
- Exhibit pro-social behaviour
Jane Mulcahy will discuss the desirability of a connected, healing-centred approach prioritising multiagency collaboration to improve outcomes for people with offending behaviour. She will explore how childhood trauma often underpins addiction and offending, drawing on her PhD research on long-sentence male prisoners, funded by the Irish Research Council and the Probation Service, as well as other research projects and extensive trauma training.
She will argue for trauma-responsive penal policy and practice, highlighting that physiological safety is essential for developing healthy relational patterns and adopting pro-social behaviours. Jane will also explore how frontline criminal justice work can foster relational health, promote strengths, and ensure safe, responsible transitions back to the community.
