Rehabilitating prisoners: The place of basic life skills programmes

Purpose: Tackling high reoffending rates in England and Wales is of significant political interest, with education and training being viewed as an important mechanism to achieve change. The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of a small empirical study examining a life skills programme delivered in a Category C prison in the West Midlands. Design/methodology/approach: The study used a multi-method approach incorporating observations of two modules, four focus groups with prisoners enrolled on the programme, questionnaires with programme completers, and semi-structured interviews with staff. Findings: The findings indicate that life skills are an important component in rehabilitation. More specifically, developing the necessary tools to assist prisoners in everyday life, such as recognition, interpretation, reflection, response, and planning is fundamental to rehabilitation. Research limitations/implications: A limitation of this study was that only prisoners currently at this Category C prison were included. This could be complemented by the inclusion of more participants who had completed the programme; however, access and data protection considerations limited the study to one location. Practical implications: The key message of this study is that without addressing basic life skills, education and vocational rehabilitation is severely limited. Social implications: To reduce reoffending rates, it is important to conceive rehabilitation in broader terms, not simply in relation to education and vocational training. Originality/value: This paper offers insight into an unreported area of good practice in prison rehabilitation provision. © Emerald Publishing Limited

Assessment of alcohol problems using AUDIT in a prison setting: more than an 'aye or no' question

<br>Background: Alcohol problems are a major UK and international public health issue. The prevalence of alcohol problems is markedly higher among prisoners than the general population. However, studies suggest alcohol problems among prisoners are under-detected, under-recorded and under-treated. Identifying offenders with alcohol problems is fundamental to providing high quality healthcare. This paper reports use of the AUDIT screening tool to assess alcohol problems among prisoners.</br> <br>Methods: Universal screening was undertaken over ten weeks with all entrants to one male Scottish prison using the AUDIT standardised screening tool and supplementary contextual questions. The questionnaire was administered by trained prison officers during routine admission procedures. Overall 259 anonymised completed questionnaires were analysed.</br> <br>Results: AUDIT scores showed a high prevalence of alcohol problems with 73% of prisoner scores indicating an alcohol use disorder (8+), including 36% having scores indicating ‘possible dependence’ (20-40). AUDIT scores indicating ‘possible dependence’ were most apparent among 18-24 and 40-64 year-olds (40% and 56% respectively). However, individual questions showed important differences, with younger drinkers less likely to demonstrate habitual and addictive behaviours than the older age group. Disparity between high levels of harmful/hazardous/dependent drinking and low levels of ‘treatment’ emerged (only 27% of prisoners with scores indicating ‘possible dependence’ reported being ‘in treatment’). Self-reported associations between drinking alcohol and the index crime were identified among two-fifths of respondents, rising to half of those reporting violent crimes.</br> <br>Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to identify differing behaviours and needs among prisoners with high AUDIT score ranges, through additional analysis of individual questions. The study has identified high prevalence of alcohol use, varied problem behaviours, and links across drinking, crime and recidivism, supporting the argument for more extensive provision of alcohol-focused interventions in prisons. These should be carefully targeted based on initial screening and assessment, responsive, and include care pathways linking prisoners to community services. Finally, findings confirm the value and feasibility of routine use of the AUDIT screening tool in prison settings, to considerably enhance practice in the detection and understanding of alcohol problems, improving on current more limited questioning (e.g. ‘yes or no’ questions).</br&gt

The contributory role of autism symptomology in child pornography offending : why there is an urgent need for empirical research in this area

Purpose As recently highlighted by Creaby-Attwood and Allely (2017) it is crucial that the possible innate vulnerabilities that contributed to sexual offending behaviour in an individual with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are taken into consideration for the application of a diversion program to avoid the stigma of a criminal conviction or during sentencing for a non-custodial outcome. Specifically, in those defendants with a diagnosis of what used to be referred to as Asperger's Syndrome (AS) and now is recognised as an ASD and who are charged and convicted of a non-contact sexual offence, education and mental health intervention will best serve the interests of justice. Design/methodology/approach This paper focuses on one particular type of sexual offending behaviour, namely, possession of child pornography. A systematic PRISMA review was conducted. Findings The authors linked examples of child pornography in the research literature to the ASD symptomology and describe how the symptomology explains such behaviour as not reflecting actual sexual deviance. Originality/value Downloading and viewing of child pornography by individuals with ASD has received relatively little research outside the mental health field. This review is of particular importance to those in the criminal justice system who may not have much knowledge and understanding of ASD. It is suggested that diversion programmes and mental health courts should be set up for this particular population charged with this particular crime in mind so that the necessary treatment/intervention/support and care can be given to this particular group. Keywords: Autism Spectrum Disorder; Asperger’s syndrome; child pornography; child exploitative material; pretrial diversio

Clinical governance in drug treatment: A good practice guide for providers and commissioners.

This document aims to advise on and support the effective implementation of clinical governance for all drug treatment providers, across all tiers, whether delivering health or social care, and whether public or independent (private or voluntary sector). It is intended as a guide for clinicians, commissioners and service managers in both the NHS and independent/non-statutory sector

Resettlement of young people leaving custody : lessons from the literature update October 2015

This review is the most recent in a series of regular updates intended to outline the latest lessons from research, policy and practice in the resettlement of young people. It provides an overview of relevant publications and developments since Beyond Youth Custody’s last update in July 2015. This review: - considers custody population trends for children and young adults, noting different trends in imprisonment relating to gender and ethnicity. The implications and challenges of such trends for resettlement of children and young people are considered. - explores recent developments in the custodial estate such as: increased violence within establishments, the introduction of 30 hours of mandatory education a week for those under 18, and the announcement of the review into the youth justice system. - summarises findings of several recently published research studies that highlight the particular vulnerabilities and safety of young people in custody. This includes research that explores pathways to suicide attempts among male prisoners, and a study that looks at how children develop coping strategies to survive the adversities of prison

An exploration of neglected themes in the development of domestic violence perpetrator programmes in the UK

This thesis is based on a body of published work which critically examines the major influences on the development of domestic violence perpetrator programmes in the UK. The thesis explores how a series of evolving theoretical frameworks, social policy, and organisational contexts have influenced approaches to practice with perpetrators, and how programme effectiveness has been variously determined and assessed. The origins of the papers and the linking narrative developed from a sense of professional dissatisfaction that several important themes concerning programmes and the potential for them to engage more effectively with perpetrators have frequently been overlooked or marginalised in the research literature. These themes concern the wider social contexts in which perpetrator programmes in the UK emerged, the explanations for men’s violence and abuse which have variously prevailed, and the practices adopted in programmes as a consequence. They note the extent to which various protagonists including feminist activists, social policy professionals, academic researchers and probation and social work managers have often conceptualised perpetrator programmes as abstract entities. Consequently, this thesis addresses a number of important and original themes. It addresses and emphasises the importance of relationships between programme practitioner and participant, significantly acknowledging the emotional impact upon practitioners of undertaking complex work in an innovative and demanding area. It takes into account the significance of the wider social, structural and cultural circumstances in which programmes function. It also examines the neglected question of what desisting from domestic abuse might actually entail as well the rewards and challenges involved. It explores how men who have perpetrated violence and abuse might better be enabled to desist from this behaviour and live more positive lives and discusses the implications for programmes and for practice

Examination of the use of self-report psychometrics within sexual offender treatment and in prediction of reoffending

This thesis aims to examine the utility of self-report psychometrics within delivery of sexual offender treatment. The focus is particularly on the ability of self-report psychometrics to discriminate between recidivists and non-recidivists and to predict recidivism outcome. Its findings are especially relevant to the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) who deliver sexual offender treatment across custodial and community settings in England and Wales. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the literature on self-report psychometrics and their use within sexual offender treatment and risk assessment. Chapter 2 provides exploratory analyses into the relationship between a large battery of pre and post self-report psychometrics and recidivism outcome on a large sample of sexual offenders. Chapter 3 examines the predictive power of a selection of psychometric variables and static variables using prognostic modelling techniques. Chapter 4 examines treatment change as measured psychometrically using clinically significant change methodology and its relationship to recidivism outcome. Chapter 5 provides a summary of the previous chapters’ findings and recommends further analyses and investigation. Chapter 6 attempts to generate a new shortened psychometric battery with good validity. Chapter 7 concludes the thesis with an overview, synthesis and discussion of the findings, limitations, practical implications and future research directions. The thesis found psychometrics to have limited discriminant and predictive validity, and in general static factors were better predictors of recidivism than psychometrics

Users of online indecent images of children (IIOC): an investigation into aetiological and perpetuating risk factors, the offending process, the risk of perpetrating a contact sexual offence, and protective factors

This thesis aims to better understand how to effectively assess and manage the risks posed by online IIOC users. First, it presents an introduction to the topic with a commentary on the increasing prevalence of this form of offending. Second, a systematic review of literature is conducted regarding the proportion of online IIOC users also found to perpetrate contact sexual offences. A qualitative synthesis of data revealed 10% of IIOC offenders had an official criminal record for a contact offence. This increased to approximately 40%, when analysing data from interview studies. Third, the thesis presents a thematic analysis of the accounts of 10 online IIOC-only offenders regarding their reasons for accessing IIOC. Here, a number of themes consistent with known pathways of contact sexual offending were identified, characterised by the unique role of general problematic Internet use. The findings are used to construct a cyclical model of IIOC offending, viewed within the context of a maladaptive emotion regulation loop. Fourth, the thesis critically evaluates the validity and reliability of a psychometric tool, the Emotion Control Questionnaire, Second Edition (ECQ2), used to measure emotion dysregulation amongst IIOC users. Fifth, a small-scale exploratory quantitative study is conducted of a mindfulness-based intervention package, aimed at reducing emotion control deficits amongst IIOC-only offenders. This found no clinically significant change in offenders’ scores, pre- to post-treatment, or when compared to a non-treatment control group. The null finding is attributed to a sampling artefact. The thesis concludes with an overall discussion of the work