Research & Data
Missing Persons draws on peer-reviewed research, government data, expert analysis, and investigative reporting. The sources below inform selected claims explored by the project.
The Brain Under Confinement
Cognitive Decline as a Result of Incarceration and the Effects of a CBT/MT Intervention
Rebecca Umbach, Adrian Raine & Noelle R. LeonardA cluster-randomized controlled trial with 197 incarcerated males aged 16 to 18 measured changes in cognitive control, emotion regulation, and emotion recognition over approximately four months. Performance on all three measures declined for the control group. A cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness training intervention limited decline in cognitive control and emotion regulation, but not emotion recognition.
Psychosis in Prison
Richard J. Thurrell, Seymour L. Halleck & Arvid F. JohnsenAn early clinical analysis, now more than sixty years old, arguing that the prison environment itself, through restriction of meaningful relationships and productive activity, functions as a precipitating factor in psychotic episodes among incarcerated people. The authors contend that idleness and severed social bonds produce atrophy that manifests as psychiatric breakdown.
The Psychological Impact of Incarceration: Implications for Post-Prison Adjustment
Craig Haney, University of California Santa CruzAn expert paper prepared for HHS analyzing institutionalization as a psychological process: incarcerated people develop dependence on institutional structure, hypervigilance, emotional over-control, and diminished self-worth. These are adaptations that make prison survivable but become serious barriers to reintegration after release.
How Prison Quietly Reshapes Human Identity
Sigifredo Castell Britton, Ph.D.Commentary drawing on psychological research and clinical observation: prolonged incarceration gradually replaces a person's pre-existing identity with an institutional self, a survival-adapted persona that persists after release and shapes behavior in ways the legal sentence never intended. The underlying scholarly literature is cited in the article.
Isolation Across Environments
What happens to people in Antarctica, space, prison, and military confinement, and what the parallels reveal.
| Environment | Duration | Primary Stressors | Observed Brain Changes | Key Researcher |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antarctica (Winter-Over) | 8 to 14 months | Sensory monotony, social constriction, darkness, confinement | Reduced dentate-gyrus volume, lower BDNF (n=8 to 12; preliminary finding requiring replication) | Stahn et al., Charité / U Penn (NEJM 2019) |
| Space (ISS / Long Duration) | 6 to 12+ months | Microgravity, isolation, loss of autonomy, distance from family | Cognitive and emotional changes documented; specific brain-structure effects vary by study | Dr. Phyllis Johnson, UBC; NASA Human Research Program |
| Prison (General Population) | Months to decades | Chronic threat, loss of agency, social deprivation, sensory stress | PTSD, executive function impairment, hypervigilance; BDNF suppression observed in animal isolation models | Sapolsky (Stanford); Smeyne (Jefferson), animal models; Haney (UCSC), psychological |
| Solitary Confinement | Days to years | Extreme sensory deprivation, total social isolation, loss of identity | Hallucinations, dissociation, self-harm, permanent psychological damage | Multiple (Haney; Smith) |
| Military Confinement (POW) | Weeks to years | Fear, physical stress, unpredictability, loss of identity | Complex PTSD, amygdala hyperreactivity, memory fragmentation | VA / DoD Research |
It seems like we have been sentenced to trauma
— Eric VanZant, Advocate & AuthorThe Crisis After Release
Release from Prison, A High Risk of Death for Former Inmates
Ingrid A. Binswanger et al., Washington State cohort, 1999 to 2003Tracking mortality among 30,237 people released from Washington State prisons between 1999 and 2003, this study established that the post-release period is among the most medically dangerous transitions a person can face, with sharply elevated risk of death from overdose, cardiovascular disease, homicide, and suicide compared to the general population.
Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation
Dr. Vivek Murthy, U.S. Surgeon GeneralThe 2023 Surgeon General's advisory documents the broad health consequences of social disconnection, finding that lacking adequate social connection can be as dangerous as smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day. The advisory does not address incarceration directly; the connection to people who are incarcerated or recently released is an editorial inference drawn by this project.
Effect of Early and Later Colony Housing on Oral Ingestion of Morphine in Rats
Bruce K. Alexander, Barry L. Beyerstein, Patricia F. Hadaway & Robert B. CoambsThe original Rat Park study found that rats housed in an enriched, social colony environment consumed dramatically less morphine solution than rats housed in isolated cages, even after forced physical dependence. This is an animal study with acknowledged limits on human generalization. The authors proposed that addiction is shaped substantially by environmental conditions, not only by pharmacology.
Mental Health in U.S. Prisons: Prevalence and Treatment
Bureau of Justice StatisticsFederal data on mental health conditions among incarcerated people documents staggering rates of untreated mental illness, and near-total absence of therapeutic intervention. The majority of people leaving prison have unaddressed trauma, depression, or anxiety disorders.
Psychological Stressors of Imprisonment and Coping Among Older Incarcerated Persons
Stuart McLennan, Leila Meyer, Tenzin Wangmo et al.Qualitative interviews with older incarcerated people and mental-health professionals in Switzerland identified two dominant stressors: loss of physical and emotional closeness in relationships, and loss of personal autonomy. Participants described five coping strategies, including withdrawal, self-improvement, and maintaining outside connections, to manage conditions that the environment itself does not resolve.
Health Condition Prevalence Among People with Recent Homelessness or Incarceration
Lucas Zellmer, Renee Van Siclen, Peter Bodurtha et al.An observational analysis of 4.3 million individuals in a Minnesota statewide health system found that people with recent incarceration or homelessness had substantially elevated rates of mental health conditions, substance use disorders, and respiratory illness compared to the general population. The study estimates prevalence, it does not establish that incarceration caused every observed condition. The authors call for payment and care-delivery models that account for this complexity.
ICE Detainees Dying by Suicide at an "Alarming" Rate
Ryan J. Foley, Michael Biesecker & Morgan Lee (Associated Press)An AP investigation documented at least 10 deaths by suicide inside ICE detention between January 2025 and mid-2026, a rate public health experts described as unprecedented and alarming. The investigation focuses specifically on civil immigration detention during this period, not the broader U.S. carceral system. Experts attributed the spike to failures in mental health screening and inadequate oversight of detention conditions.
Who Returns, and Why
Custodial Sanctions and Reoffending: A Meta-Analytic Review
Deanna M. Petrich, Travis C. Pratt, Chelsey S. Gau & Jillian J. TuranovicA meta-analysis of 116 studies examining whether custodial sentences reduce reoffending compared to non-custodial alternatives. The review found that incarceration had a null or slightly criminogenic average effect on recidivism, meaning it neither reliably reduced reoffending nor dramatically worsened it, but that more punitive conditions tended toward worse outcomes.
Why Prison Often Fails to Change Behavior
Sigifredo Castell Britton, Ph.D.Commentary drawing on clinical observation and cited psychological research: punishment-focused incarceration manages behavior through containment but does not address the emotional and psychological conditions that produced that behavior. The article argues this is why recidivism rates have remained persistently high across decades of sentencing policy reform.
Bureau of Justice Statistics rearrest data for the 2005 state-prisoner release cohort, tracked over nine years.
| Cohort | Rearrested Within 1 Year | Rearrested Within 3 Years | Rearrested Within 5 Years | Rearrested Within 9 Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 State-Prison Release Cohort (BJS) | 44% | 68% | 77% | 83% |
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2018 Update on Prisoner Recidivism: A 9-Year Follow-Up Period (2005 to 2014). Rearrest measures an arrest, not a conviction or return to prison. These figures are for the specific 2005 release cohort and may not represent current populations.
How We Got Here
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Neuroscience of Incarceration: A Summary
A 12-page overview of the peer-reviewed science informing the film, suitable for advocates, educators, and policymakers.
Request PDFCommunity Screening Discussion Guide
Facilitation guide for organizations hosting screenings, includes discussion prompts, local resource lists, and action steps.
Request PDFMass Incarceration by the Numbers
One-page data reference covering incarceration rates, recidivism statistics, racial disparities, and post-release mortality.
Request PDFFull Research Bibliography
Complete annotated bibliography of all studies, reports, and primary sources referenced in the film and companion materials.
Request PDFWhat Works: Evidence-Based Re-Entry Policy
A policy brief synthesizing research on re-entry interventions that demonstrably reduce recidivism and improve public safety outcomes.
Request PDFMissing Persons Press Kit
Film synopsis, director biography, high-resolution stills, and production information for media and festival submissions.
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