Psychiatric symptoms among prisoners in Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Prior reports showed a global increase in the prison population including in Nigerian prisons. Despite this observed increase in prison population, the literature on psychopathology among prisoners in Nigeria remains scanty.

Objective: This study was aimed at determining the levels of psychiatric symptoms among inmates of a medium security prison in Nigeria.

Methods: Two hundred and thirty prisoners were assessed with the Symptoms Checklist-90 (SCL-90) and General Health Questionnaire version twenty-eight (GHQ-28) to ascertain the presence of psychopathology.

Results: All the respondents were males, their mean age was 32.79 years (SD 8.59); the ages ranged from 18 to 69 years. The period of time spent in prison ranged from one month to 9 years. Seventy-nine percent of the respondents scored above the GHQ-28 cut-off indicating a probable psychological distress, and with regard to SCL-90, 68% had paranoia, 64% depression, 56% anxiety and 56% interpersonal sensitivity.

Conclusion: The findings from this study showed high degrees of psychological distress and psychiatric symptoms among inmates of the study location. There is an urgent need for mental health services in Nigerian Prisons.

Keywords: Psychiatric symptoms, Prisons, Nigeria