ORIGINAL ARTICLE The role of visits and parent–child relationship quality in promoting positive outcomes for children of incarcerated parents Kristen P. Kremer 1 | Kirsten M. Christensen 2 | Kathryn N. Stump 3 | Rebecca L. Stelter 3 | Janis B. Kupersmidt 3 | Jean E. Rhodes 2 1 Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, USA 2 Department of Psychology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, USA 3 Innovation Research & Training, Durham, North Carolina, USA Correspondence Kristen P. Kremer, Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work, Kansas State University, 204 Waters Hall, 1603 Old Claflin Place, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA. Email: kpkremer@ksu.edu Funding information Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Grant/Award Number: 2014-JU-FX-0004 Abstract In the current study, we sought to determine the effects of parent visits on a range of psychological outcomes among children of incarcerated parents. Drawing on data from the Mentoring Children of Incarcerated Parents Enhancement Demonstration Project, a recent, large-scale evaluation of mentoring programme practices, we hypothesized that ongoing contact would lead to an improved parent–child relation- ship which, in turn, would promote a range of psychosocial outcomes in children. Results of a structural equation model (n = 228) revealed a significant positive association between child's frequency of visits with their incarcerated parent and child–parent relationship quality, which in turn, was significantly associated with the child's life purpose and depression/loneliness. Findings from the current study shed light on the importance of children's visits with their incarcerated parent for later psychological outcomes. KEYWORDS children of incarcerated parents, outcomes, relationship, structural equation model, visitation 1 | INTRODUCTION In the United States, over five million children experience parental incarceration at some point during childhood (Murphey & Cooper, 2015). Consequently, over 7% of all US children are at risk for developing adverse outcomes associated with parent incarceration, such as economic and residential instability and behavioural challenges (Geller et al., 2009; Murray et al., 2012). In light of these potential risks, researchers and policymakers have sought to identify factors that might protect children against negative effects of parent incarcer- ation. One such factor is parent visits, in-person meetings between a child and their incarcerated parent, which can provide children with opportunities for continued parent–child connection (Poehlmann- Tynan & Pritzl, 2019). This connection, in turn, may provide security and reassurance children need to thrive and feel confident about the future. For this reason, children who have more frequent, consistent interactions with their parents may fair better, whereas those unable to frequently visit incarcerated parents may develop negative narra- tives or beliefs about their future, and how much they are loved or supported by their parents (Shlafer et al., 2019). To date, however, most research related to children of incarcerated parents has focused on their behavioural outcomes, including juvenile delinquency and adult incarceration (Murray et al., 2012; Noel & Najdowski, 2020). Limited research has explored the relationship between children and their incarcerated parents, particularly with regards to the role of visits during incarceration. In this study, we examined the protective role of visiting incarcerated parents on child–parent relationship quality and later child psychosocial outcomes. Although child–parent contact can be maintained through means other than in-person visits (e.g., phone calls, letters and video calls), in-person visits have been selected as the focus of the present study as they represent the most direct form of parent–child interaction. Received: 4 January 2021 Revised: 4 June 2021 Accepted: 31 July 2021 DOI: 10.1111/cfs.12872 Child & Family Social Work. 2021;1–11. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/cfs © 2021 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. 1