Towards effective practice in offender supervision

This paper has been prepared principally for the Performance Improvement Strategy Group - a group convened by the Community Justice Division of the Scottish Government to advise and assist in the development of criminal justice social work services in particular and of community justice more generally. The PISG comprises representatives of the Scottish Government's Community Justice Division, of the Effective Practice Unit, of the Association of Directors of Social Work, of the voluntary sector service providers in Scotland, of the Scottish Prison Service, of the Risk Management Authority and from various Scottish universities. Discussions between the chair and some of the members of the PISG charged with leading work-streams on accreditation, interventions and inspection, indicated the need for the provision of a summary of effective practice that was sensitive to the unique Scottish context for the community supervision of offenders. The paper aims to provide that summary and to develop some ideas around a Scottish model of effective practice in offender supervision; as such it is concerned principally with the roles and tasks of criminal justice social work staff rather than with the important but broader debates around community and criminal justice in Scotland

Social Bonding, Early School Leaving, and Delinquency

In this paper we investigate how successful social bonding theory is at predicting juvenile delinquency and school dropout behaviour. We adopt a simple dynamic approach which assumes that past involvement in risky behaviour reduces individual restraints for future participation in risky behaviour. We use a ten years education panel following Dutch adolescents who participated in a survey in their first year of high school in 1999. This information was matched to annual information on police arrests based on registry data. Our results show that school performance (as measured by test scores) is the key social bond element preventing young people from engaging in risk behaviour. We also find that involvement in past risky behaviour increases the likelihood of future missteps and that the protective influence of school performance is mitigated.labour economics ;

Support and Services for Parents:A Review of the Literature in Engaging and Supporting Parents

This literature review aims to draw together existing knowledge on assessing and evaluating parenting interventions. In conducting the literature review, the research team was interested in re-examining the historical policy context to locate the rationale for the introduction of Parenting Orders and the apparent under use of the provisions; to re-examine the evidence of risk and protective factors and the interrelated issues of antisocial behaviour and child care; alongside effective approaches to family service provision. These themes set the context and framework for examining the evidence on the practice of engagement with clients and the use of compulsion

Effective Approaches With Young Adults: A Guide for Probation Services

The aim of this guide is to give probation practitioners, whether in the National Probation Service or Community Rehabilitation Companies, the tools to deliver a more effective approach to young adults. It provides practical suggestions for effective ways to engage young adults and support their desistance from crime. It also includes suggestions for managers on what they can do to enable practitioners to improve outcomes within probation services

Reconsidering the theory on adolescent-limited and life-course persistent antisocial behaviour

This article presents a critical review of the taxonomic theory of adolescent-limited and life-course persistent antisocial behaviour (Moffitt 1993) and its empirical evidence. This influential theory suggests that there are two qualitatively distinct types of offenders that require distinct theoretical explanations. Moreover, the empirical evidence for the typology is considered to be strong, at least by some. I discuss along three lines. First, to what extent the taxonomy should be interpreted literally. Second, whether the suggested mechanisms are likely to produce the hypothesized groups. Third, whether some of the most important empirical evidence really does support the theory. I conclude that the theoretical arguments are surprisingly unclear on key issues and that the empirical evidence is highly problematic

Children who bully at school

Examines children who bully at school, and specifically on the ways in which parenting and family functioning underpin a child\u27s bullying behaviour. Overview School bullying is a serious problem worldwide. There is now strong evidence to indicate that children who bully at school are at significant risk for a range of antisocial, criminal and poor health outcomes later in life. Importantly, bullying is a behaviour often influenced by family environment. As such, working with families to interrupt the continuity from school bullying to later adverse life outcomes could be viewed as a form of early intervention for preventing crime, as well as a method of promoting health. This paper focuses on children who bully at school, and specifically on the ways in which parenting and family functioning underpin a child\u27s bullying behaviour. New evidence for possible protective or intervening factors that may interrupt the developmental sequence of antisocial behaviour is summarised. Parental involvement in anti-bullying interventions is also considered. Finally, some promising approaches for working with children who bully are outlined