International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology

Leuprecht, Christian; B. Skillicorn, David; Bright, David

doi: 10.1177/0306624x221124830pmid: 36172743

Datasets of offender attributes, both pre-custody and in-custody, were provided by the Correctional Service of Canada with the goal of exploring whether Security Threat Group (STG) offenders (informally, gang members of various kinds) differ in any systematic way from other offenders. For pre-custody attributes, we show that the entire offender population varies along two almost independent axes, one associated with affinity for violence, and the other with affinity for substance abuse. Within this structure, STG offenders are characteristically less extreme, in either direction, than the general offender population. For approximately two dozen attributes, STG offenders, as a group, tend to have higher values; for a few, they tend to have lower values. For in-custody attributes, the entire offender population forms a triangular structure whose vertices represent: passivity; violence and troublemaking; and involvement in programs leading to partial release. The differences between the STG offender population and the general offender population are small. An offender who is placed at the high end of the propensity for violence axis and/or the high end of the substance abuse axis based on pre-custody attributes is much more likely to be involved in incidents, grievances, and violence while in custody. This may have implications for risk stratification of incoming offenders.

Humphrey, Branna; Edwards, Bradley D.; Pealer, Jennifer

doi: 10.1177/0306624x221132998pmid: 36314490

Previous research has established that juveniles who experience negative parental influence are more likely to engage in problem and offending behavior. Less attention has been given to the possibility that criminal thinking styles might partially explain this relationship. This study examined the negative parental influences and criminal thinking styles of 1,354 juvenile offenders to establish that both negative parental influences and criminal thinking are significantly associated with juvenile problem and offending behavior. Further, the analysis showed that juvenile criminal thinking (proactive, reactive, and general) might mediate the relationship between negative parental influences and problem behavior. Implications for such findings are discussed.

Capinha, Marta; Pereira, Marco; Sousa, Maria do Natal; Rijo, Daniel

doi: 10.1177/0306624x221148125pmid: 36633014

Intimate partner violence (IPV) has been targeted as a significant concern worldwide, but evidence for the efficacy of perpetrators’ interventions is not undisputable. This article briefly summarizes the evidence about perpetrators’ intervention efficacy, factors associated with recidivism, and evidence-based recommendations, before outlining the assumptions of a new community-delivered intervention aiming to rehabilitate IPV perpetrators: the CONTIGO Program. This program uses an innovative framework, focused on early maladaptive schemas, and combining cognitive, interpersonal, and motivational interview principles. The features of this intervention are discussed, and exploratory results regarding drop-out rates (8%) and recidivism (15.4%) in a sample of 162 court-mandated males are exposed. The detailed presentation of the CONTIGO Program and its intervention model represents a novel contribution that is sorely lacking in the IPV literature and could foster further research and debate about what can be done to effectively intervene with IPV perpetrators.

Alward, Lucas M.; Viglione, Jill

doi: 10.1177/0306624x231159882pmid: 36896872

In recent years, Western and non-Western countries have experience increased reliance on probation services. However, prior research indicates that high job demands and ambiguous role responsibilities invoke feelings of stress and suggest the importance of understanding the relationship between stress and burnout and turnover. While past efforts largely focused on correctional officers (COs), less is known about how probation officers (POs) experience burnout and how organizational attributes may influence this relationship. Using survey data of federal POs (N = 80) across eight offices in a southern state, the current study examines the influence of individual characteristics and organizational attributes in predicting burnout and turnover intent. To answer our research questions, we perform a series of linear regression models. Findings suggest the importance of affective commitment for reducing POs’ feelings of burnout and turnover intent. Implications of these findings and directions of future research are discussed.

Criss, Jhala; John, Aesha

doi: 10.1177/0306624x231159884pmid: 36896879

The article includes a systematic review of therapeutic interventions being used to improve mental health of males and females incarcerated in U.S. jails and prisons. Using pertinent keywords, we searched the following databases: SocINDEX, CINAHL Complete, Medline Complete, PsychINFO, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, and Criminal Justice Abstracts with Full Text for studies published between 2010 and 2021. The initial search yielded 9,622 articles. After screening, 28 articles met the inclusion criteria and were reviewed. Review indicated use of a diverse range of interventions to address mental health outcomes including, but not limited to, PTSD, depression, and anxiety. A few studies did not focus on specific mental health outcomes, but rather on behavioral outcomes such as distress, affect, mood, time spent in the hospital, number of acts of self-injury, competency restoration, and wellbeing of the participants. The review includes implications for future research and practice.

Ben Yair, Yitzhak; Ozeri, Keshet; York, Alen S.; Ronel, Natti

doi: 10.1177/0306624x231165424pmid: 37086171

This study addresses the process experienced by youth who started out as volunteering beneficiaries in treatment settings and became volunteers for at-risk youth themselves. Using the phenomenological approach, the study included 10 Israeli interviewees aged 20 to 30 who were regular volunteers. The findings suggested three themes related to the process experienced by the volunteers: (1) perceived altruism—the altruism attributed to the volunteers who had benefited the participants as youths; (2) the identity transformation from beneficiary to benefactor; and (3) acquired altruism—the acquisition of that trait by the participants. Applying the principles of positive criminology, this study shows how attributing altruism to the behavior of the volunteer can serve as fertile ground for acquiring altruism oneself, in a process that eventually results in volunteering for the benefit of others.

Stoliker, Bryce E.; Wangler, Haile; Abderhalden, Frances P.; Jewell, Lisa M.

doi: 10.1177/0306624x231170112pmid: 37098823

Despite high suicide mortality in U.S. jails, there is limited research into precursors for suicide in this population, such as suicidal ideation. The current study examined the prevalence and correlates of lifetime and jail-specific suicidal ideation among a sample of 196 individuals (137 men) in custody in a U.S. jail. Nearly half the sample had reported lifetime suicidal ideation (45%), whereas 30% had reported jail-specific suicidal ideation. Adjusted correlates of lifetime suicidal ideation included a history of mental illness (OR = 2.79) and drug use (OR = 2.70). Adjusted correlates of jail-specific suicidal ideation included a history of mental illness (OR = 2.74), drug use (OR = 3.16), and a dehumanizing custodial environment (OR = 3.74). Some theoretically and empirically relevant factors were not significantly associated with suicidal ideation. Both expected and unexpected findings are discussed within the context of suicide theory and research, and practical implications are explored.