Translational Issues in Psychological Science, Vol 11(3), Sep 2025, 308-320; doi:10.1037/tps0000386
Inequities and inequalities are apparent to psychologists who work at the intersection of the criminal legal system. The COVID-19 pandemic raised many concerns surrounding the spread to over 1.4 million people incarcerated in jails and prisons in the United States. Correctional settings are often deprived, overcrowded, and unsanitary environments, which do not lend themselves to preventing or recovering from illness. Furthermore, it is difficult for incarcerated individuals to adhere to recommendations to help reduce the spread of COVID-19, such as hand washing and social/physical distancing. Disproportionate minority contact, which describes the overrepresentation of minoritized racial/ethnic populations in the criminal and juvenile legal systems, also estimates precisely who is most at risk for contracting COVID-19 in these settings. For instance, Black people are more likely to be incarcerated and suffer from health conditions that increase their risk for infection; therefore, those incarcerated are at exponential risk of infection. As the American Psychological Association recently adopted a resolution to combat racism, addressing structural and institutional racism within the criminal legal system is critical. The present article discusses how psychologists can use social science to inform smart decarceration tactics to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and mass incarceration. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)