Community-Empowerment Healing and Resilience: A Systematic Literature Review of Bibliotherapy for Depression among Remand Prisoners in Malaysia

Studies show a very high incidence of significant mental disorders in prison populations worldwide, with up to a third of remand prisoners experiencing depression while incarcerated. Bibliotherapy has emerged as a prospective intervention in response to rehabilitation needs and to alleviate depressive symptoms among inmates. The systematic review evaluates the effectiveness of bibliotherapy in treating depression among remand prisoners in Malaysia. Using the PICo framework to formulate the research question with the PRISMA guidelines for the review process, Scopus and Google Scholar were searched for these studies. Six studies were identified, and bibliotherapy was found to have a small but significant effect in the treatment of depression among prisoners in Malaysia. However, the small number of studies and possible publication bias may affect the generalizability of results and the short time periods in which they were conducted. Despite these limitations, bibliotherapy presents a comforting and accessible intervention for addressing mental health challenges in prisons settings and establishing tailored bibliotherapeutic programs for optimum benefit for this vulnerable group.