Book•
The Psychology of Criminal Conduct
01 Jan 1994-
TL;DR: For instance, the authors investigates the relationship between the beginning and maintenance of criminal activity and diverse risk predictors (singular and social, static and dynamic) in the development of criminal behaviour.
Abstract: Throughout the last decades the so-called Psychology of criminal conduct, which agglutinates scientific knowledge surrounding criminal phenomena, has been taking shape. We can find among the principal fields of interests an explanation for antisocial behaviour where learning theories, analyses of individual characteristics, strain-agression hypotheses, studies on social vinculation and crime, and the analyses of criminal careers are relevant. This last sector, also denominated ‘developmental criminology’, investigates the relationship between the beginning and maintenance of criminal activity and diverse risk predictors (singular and social, static and dynamic). Their results have had great relevance in the creation of crime prevention and treatment programs. Psychological treatments of offenders are aimed at the modification of those risk factors, known as ‘criminogenic needs’, which are considered to be directly related to their criminal activity. In particular, treatment programs attempt to provide criminals (whether juveniles, abusers, sexual aggressors, etc.) with new repertoires of prosocial behaviour, develop their thinking, regulate their choleric emotions, and prevent relapses or recidivisms in crime. Lastly, nowadays the Psychology of criminal conduct places special emphasis on the prediction and management of the risk for violent and antisocial behaviour, a field which will be addressed in a subsequent paper of this same monograph.
Citations
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01 Jan 1998
TL;DR: The clinical concept of psychopathy is linked inextricably to criminal behavior, and in particular to criminal violence, and it is common for people to assume, naively and incorrectly, that all psychopaths commit crime and that anyone who routinely engages in antisocial behavior must be a psychopath.
Abstract: The clinical concept of psychopathy is linked inextricably to criminal behavior, and in particular to criminal violence. For those of us who work with psychopaths, this link is both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, it is a stark reminder of the tremendous social, psychological, and economic costs associated with psychopathy and it reinforces the motivation of researchers and clinicians to understand the disorder. But, on the other hand, it proves distracting at times. It is common for people to assume, naively and incorrectly, that all psychopaths commit crime and that anyone who routinely engages in antisocial behavior must be a psychopath. This has lead some to reject psychopathy as simply a moral judgment or a tautology, one that can be misused dangerously in forensic contexts (Hart & Hare, 1996).
92 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors address the increasing difficulties faced in community-based management of sexual offenders in Canada, and present an overview of the Canadian penal system and its handling of sexual offender.
Abstract: This paper addresses the increasing difficulties faced in community-based management of sexual offenders in Canada. Those offenders at particularly high-risk to re-offend (e.g., sadistic rapists and serial child molesters) often receive indeterminate sentences, and are rarely released to the community prior to death or incapacitating illness. However, many other high-risk offenders are released from custody at the end of a determinate sentence, often without the benefit of adequate supervision or treatment. In a restorative justice initiative managed by the Mennonite Central Committee of Ontario, 30 high-risk sexual offenders released at sentence completion were provided with community support in the form of Circles of Support and Accountability. A brief overview of the Canadian penal system and its handling of sexual offenders is given to provide the social and political framework in which many current restorative justice projects have been undertaken. It is argued that traditional punitive meas...
91 citations
01 Jan 2009
TL;DR: An overview of Akers' social learning theory including its theoretical foundations and four central explanatory concepts of differential association, definitions, differential reinforcement, and imitation is provided in this paper, along with a review of the evidence on the SSSL model pointing toward future directions for social learning and social structure.
Abstract: The purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview of Akers’ social learning theory including its theoretical foundations and four central explanatory concepts of differential association, definitions, differential reinforcement, and imitation Akers (Social learning and social structure: a general theory of crime and deviance Northeastern University Press, Boston, 1998) has extended social learning theory to the macro-level, and thus we provide a look at the assumptions, concepts, and propositions of his social structure social learning model (SSSL) This discussion is followed by an examination of empirical research that has investigated the ability of social learning theory to account for variation in criminal and deviant behavior and a review of the evidence on the SSSL model pointing toward future directions for social learning and social structure The chapter concludes with a look at the applications of social learning theory to programs and policies
91 citations
TL;DR: Outcomes showed real promise for delivering DBT in a prison setting, and its efficacy in reducing criminogenic risk and improving the manageability and quality of life for this highly problematic group of women.
Abstract: Background
The over-representation of female prisoners with borderline personality disorder (BPD) is an area of concern for HM Prison Service. Pilot programmes of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) were undertaken for the first time in three British prisons for women diagnosed with BPD. Standard year-long programmes were piloted in two closed training prisons. Three short-format programmes were undertaken in a local allocation prison.
Method
Evaluation measures included psychometric tests, behavioural data, and interviews with participants and key personnel. Sixteen of the 30 women who embarked on the programmes completed them, though five dropouts were transferred or released, leaving a voluntary attrition rate of 33%. Fourteen completed all measures. A waiting-list control group of eight participants was also set up. Five completed all measures.
Results
The vast majority of completers showed overall improvements in psychometric data often reaching statistical significance, and with notable effect sizes, while there was no significant overall change in the control group (though improvements were seen). A downturn in overall self-harm was also seen.
Conclusion
Results are tentative at this stage because of the small sample size. However, despite the numerous challenges associated with implementation, outcomes showed real promise for delivering DBT in a prison setting, and its efficacy in reducing criminogenic risk and improving the manageability and quality of life for this highly problematic group. Lessons learnt for future implementation in correctional settings are discussed. Copyright © 2005 Whurr Publishers Ltd.
91 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a review of the literature that has sought to investigate the association between negative emotion and offending is presented, concluding that there are grounds to consider negative emotional states as important dynamic risk factors that should be addressed as part of any psychological intervention to reduce the risk of re-offending amongst forensic clients.
Abstract: Despite a growing body of evidence pointing to the central role of negative emotional states in the offence process, there has been relatively little work, either theoretical or applied, investigating this area. This paper offers a review of the literature that has sought to investigate the association between negative emotion and offending. It is concluded that there are grounds to consider negative emotional states as important dynamic risk factors that should be addressed as part of any psychological intervention to reduce the risk of re-offending amongst forensic clients.
90 citations
References
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TL;DR: It is suggested that delinquency conceals 2 distinct categories of individuals, each with a unique natural history and etiology: a small group engages in antisocial behavior of 1 sort or another at every life stage, whereas a larger group is antisocial only during adolescence.
Abstract: This chapter suggests that delinquency conceals two distinct categories of individuals, each with a unique natural history and etiology: A small group engages in antisocial behavior of one sort or another at every life stage, whereas a larger group is antisocial only during adolescence. According to the theory of life-course-persistent antisocial behavior, children's neuropsychological problems interact cumulatively with their criminogenic environments across development, culminating m a pathological personality. According to the theory of adolescence-limited antisocial behavior, a contemporary maturity gap encourages teens to mimic antisocial behavior in ways that are normative and adjustive. There are marked individual differences in the stability of antisocial behavior. The chapter reviews the mysterious relationship between age and antisocial behavior. Some youths who refrain from antisocial behavior may, for some reason, not sense the maturity gap and therefore lack the hypothesized motivation for experimenting with crime.
9,425 citations
28 Jul 2017
TL;DR: In Causes of Delinquency, Hirschi attempts to state and test a theory of delinquency, seeing in the delinquent a person relatively free of the intimate attachments, the aspirations, and the moral beliefs that bind most people to a life within the law.
Abstract: In Causes of Delinquency, Hirschi attempts to state and test a theory of delinquency, seeing in the delinquent a person relatively free of the intimate attachments, the aspirations, and the moral beliefs that bind most people to a life within the law. In prominent alternative theories, the delinquent appears either as a frustrated striver forced into delinquency by his acceptance of the goals common to us all, or as an innocent foreigner attempting to obey the rules of a society that is not in position to make the law or define conduct as good or evil. Hirschi analyzes a large body of data on delinquency collected in Western Contra Costa County, California, contrasting throughout the assumptions of the strain, control, and cultural deviance theories. He outlines the assumptions of these theories and discusses the logical and empirical difficulties attributed to each of them. Then draws from sources an outline of social control theory, the theory that informs the subsequent analysis and which is advocated here. Often listed as a "Citation Classic," Causes of Delinquency retains its force and cogency with age. It is an important volume and a necessary addition to the libraries of sociologists, criminologists, scholars and students in the area of delinquency.
3,690 citations
Book•
01 Jan 2005TL;DR: Haug, Sorensen, Gruber, Song, Relapse Prevention for Opioid Dependence, and Wheeler, George, Stoner, Enhancing the Relapse prevention model for Sex Offenders: Adding Recidivism Risk Reduction Therapy to Target Offenders' Dynamic Risk Needs.
Abstract: Marlatt, Witkiewitz, Relapse Prevention for Alcohol and Drug Problems. Blume, de la Cruz, Relapse Prevention among Diverse Populations. Kadden, Cooney, Treating Alcohol Problems. Shiffman, Kassel, Gwaltney, McChargue, Relapse Prevention for Smoking. Carroll, Rawson, Relapse Prevention for Stimulant Dependence. Haug, Sorensen, Gruber, Song, Relapse Prevention for Opioid Dependence. Roffman, Stephens, Relapse Prevention for Cannabis Abuse and Dependence. Kilmer, Cronce, Palmer, Relapse Prevention for Abuse of Club Drugs, Hallucinogens, Inhalants, and Steroids. Collins, Relapse Prevention for Eating Disorders and Obesity. Shaffer, LaPlante, Treatment of Gambling Disorders. Wheeler, George, Stoner, Enhancing the Relapse Prevention Model for Sex Offenders: Adding Recidivism Risk Reduction Therapy to Target Offenders' Dynamic Risk Needs. Zawacki, Stoner, George, Relapse Prevention for Sexually Risky Behaviors.
2,866 citations
01 Jan 1989
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a theory of criminality, heredity, and environment for criminality and apply it to the problem of illegal behavior in the United States.
Abstract: 1. Introduction.- 2. The Constitutional Theory of Criminality.- 3. Crime and Personality.- 4. Criminality, Heredity, and Environment.- 5. A Biological Theory of Criminality.- 6. The Function and Effectiveness of Sentencing.- 7. The Prevention and Treatment of Illegal Behavior.- 8. Sexual Deviations.- 9. Summary and Conclusions.- References.
404 citations
Book•
27 Apr 1993
TL;DR: The Measurement and Distribution of Crime, Criminology, and Psychology as mentioned in this paper The Measurement of and distribution of crime, crime, and mental health disorders, and the effectiveness and ethics of intervention with offenders.
Abstract: Crime, Criminology, and Psychology. The Measurement and Distribution of Crime. Classification of Offenders. Social and Environmental Theories of Crime. Individually Oriented and Integrated Theories of Crime. Biological Correlates of Antisocial Behavior. Familial and Social Correlates of Crime. Personal Attributes of Offenders. Aggression and Violent Crime. Crime and Mental Disorder. Sexual Deviation and Sexual Offending. Forensic Psychology and the Offender. Psychological Interventions with Offenders. Treatment of Dangerous Offenders. The Effectiveness and Ethics of Intervention. References. Index.
373 citations