RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Over 4.53 million arrests were made in 2021 in the United States. People under 26 years of age were more likely to be arrested than older people. Although mental health disparities are prominent in the incarcerated population, the subject has not been closely examined among young adults specifically. OBJECTIVES: This study examines how criminal justice involvement, specifically arrests, affects the mental health of adults between 18 and 25 years of age. METHODS: We analyzed secondary data using the 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The study used a subsample of 13,494 people aged 18 to 25 years, including 7,330 women and 6,164 men. History of arrest was the key independent variable. Depression, serious mental illness (SMI), substance use, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempt were the outcome variables. We performed five multivariate logistic regression models for each outcome variable, controlling for race/ethnicity, income, and education level for men and women separately. RESULTS: Of 13,494 respondents, 6.63% had a history of arrest. Among young women, a history of arrest was associated with significantly higher adjusted odds ratios for all mental health concerns. Most notably, a history of arrest increased the likelihood of substance use by a factor of 15.19, suicide attempts by 2.27, SMI by 1.79, suicidal ideation by 1.75, and depression by 1.52. Among young men, a history of arrest was associated with increased adjusted odds ratios (AORs) for substance use (AOR, 13.37; p < .001), suicidal ideation (AOR, 1.45; p = .011), and suicide attempt (AOR, 1.82; p = .044). CONCLUSIONS: We found a strong relationship between young people having an arrest history and mental health concerns. More specifically, a history of arrest was associated with all mental health concerns among young women, while it was associated with only substance use and suicide among young men. Providing arrestees with appropriate mental health care would benefit them and the criminal justice system by decreasing the odds of recidivism.
RESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: Black individuals in the USA are arrested and incarcerated at a significantly higher rate than White individuals, and incarceration is associated with increased HIV vulnerability. Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) reduces the risk for HIV transmission, but little is known about the relationship between HIV risk behavior and willingness to use PrEP among Black individuals with an arrest history. METHOD: A total of 868 individuals completed a nationally representative survey and provided baseline data on sexual risk. Participants were grouped as those with a history of arrest (N = 226) and those with no history of arrest (N=619) based on self-reported arrest history. Our study examined HIV risk behaviors associated with willingness to use PrEP between those with arrest history and those without arrest history. RESULTS: Participants with an arrest history were more likely to have a lifetime history of anal sex (p<0.0001) and sexually transmitted diseases (p=0.0007). A history of multiple sexual partners in the past 3 months was associated with PrEP willingness in individuals with an arrest history [aPR 2.61 (1.77, 3.85), p<0.0001], adjusting for other covariates in the model. CONCLUSIONS: Differences in risk behavior and willingness to use PrEP exist by arrest history. Understanding these risk behaviors are necessary to increase access to PrEP. PrEP uptake and adherence interventions, when recommended and made available for individuals at substantive risk of HIV infection at the time of arrest and during incarceration, are essential to reducing the spread of HIV in correctional facilities and in communities to which they return.
