Write a letter to the editor about online studies and how it is mentally affecting the teenagers.please answer fast....
Answers
Prior to COVID‐19, it was well documented that prisoners worldwide experienced greater levels of mental illness, with an estimated one in seven inmates having major depression or psychosis [1]. Various complex factors contribute to this impressive figure, one being a prisoner's beliefs that they are not in control of the outcome of their lives, also known as having an external locus of control (LOC) [2]. Studies have found that inmates commonly have external LOC, and this is linked with higher levels of depression in incarcerated men [3] and women alike [4], and in general, an external LOC is correlated with higher levels of stress [5] and anxiety [6].
For those who are incarcerated, a lack of control is less of a belief and more of a reality in all aspects of their lives. Studies conducted since the outbreak of COVID‐19 in the United States have revealed that Americans are feeling more anxious due to worries relating to them or a loved one contracting coronavirus [7]. It is expected that prisoners would suffer from the same anxiety, but, unlike the general population, they cannot attempt to reduce this anxiety by following the safety guidelines outlined by the CDC and their anxieties may be even greater due to their elevated risk of getting sick. In addition, anxiety worsens pre‐existing mental illnesses, a fact that is especially relevant to the prison population. The compounding of unsafe prison environments, greater prevalence of mental illness, and prisoners’ inabilities to improve or control their surroundings can lead to disproportionately poorer mental health in response to COVID‐19.
In order to counteract this response, prisons should focus on addressing the cause of the anxieties. Improving the environment of the prison would reduce the actual and perceived risk of contracting COVID‐19 and lessen prisoners’ anxiety. Improvements to consider include releasing non‐violent offenders with little time left to serve to reduce overcrowding, providing adequate sanitation supplies to ensure personal hygiene, and equipping prison officers and prisoners with proper personal protective equipment.