A2 FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY - DEALING WITH OFFENDERS; BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION, ANGER MANAGEMENT AND RESTORATIVE JUSTICE Flashcards
Describe behaviour modification
- Based on behaviourist principles; all beh is learned and can therefore be unlearned
- Using a token economy system, obedient behs are +vely reinforced and disobedeint behs are -vely punished, w/ the aim of continuing the obedient behs on and making the disobedient behs extinct.
- The tokens are secondary reinforcers, as on their own they mean nothing, but they can be cashed in for the primary reinforcer of special privileges/ rewards
Describe the 4 stages of beh modification
1) Desirable beh is established
2) Broken down into small increments
3) Baseline measure is establised
4) Everyone who comes into contact w/ the prisoner follows the same regime of selective reinforcement, e.g being reinforced by the prison officers for avoiding violence
Evaluate beh modification
(+) Hobbs and Holt (1976) used a token ec system in 3 young offenders’ institutes and used a 4th one as a control. Found a sig increase in +ve beh in the 3 beh.al units compared to the control; system is highly effective in prisons.
(+) Easy to implement and v cost effective; doesn’t need specialist training like anger managment does
(-) System isn’t optional and may only serve to make the guards’ lives easier instead of focusing on the rehabilitation of the prisoners
(-) Prisoners may comply w/ good beh inside prison to get the rewards, but once released, there is no instant reward for good beh, so the system has little long term rehabilitative value
Describe anger management
Novaco (1975) says that cog factors trigger the emotional arousal that cause us to ciommit crimes, and that anger is quick to surface in some of us, especially when they feel anxious or threatened.
Beh.ism says their anger is +vely reinforce by the contol they feel when angry. So AM programmes (forms of CBT) teach ppl to recognise when they’re losing control and encourages them to dev non-violent conflict-resolution techniques.
Describe the 1st stage in anger management
Cognitive preparation: offender reflects on past experience and typical anger patterns. Offender learns to identify situations that act as triggers
If O’s response to identified situation is irrational, then therapist makes this clear and the situation is redefined as non-threatening. by doing this, the therapist is attempting to brek a potentially automatic response for the O.
Describe the 2nd stage of anger management
Skill aquisition: Os taught techniques to deal w/ anger provoking situations. They can be cog (+ve talk to encourage calmness), beh.al (training in assertiveness and how to communicate more effectively) or physiological (relaxation/meditation techniques)
The physiological ones especially reinforce the idea that O can be in control of their emotions instead of being controlled by them.
Describe the 3rd stage of anger management
Os practice their skills in a carefully monitored env w/ the therapist
O and therpist role play to re-enact situations that would’ve evoked anger in the past.
This requires good committment from O to take it serioulsy, and therapist’s job is to provoke them, then reinforce good, controlled beh.
Evaluate anger management
(+) Keen et al (2000) studied 17-21 yr olds taking the National Anger Management Package (7 lots of 2 hr sessions in 3 weeks, then a final session a month afterwards), and found that despite initial issues of Os not taking it seriously, the end results were v positive, w/ Os reporting better awareness of AM difficulties and better capacity to show self-control
(+) Attempts to tackle the root of offending instead of just discouraging it like BM does
(-) However Blackburn (1993) points out that whilst AM is great in the short term, the effects are lost in the long term once they’re released and in a busy, anger-provoking env e.g. a busy pub; little rehabilitative value
(-) V expensive and requires special training; uneconomical.
Describe the aim of restorative justice
To make an O realise the implications of their actions for the victim/victim’s family, and to improve relationships. It also aims to address the needs of the victim to help them recover from the crime.
Describe RJ
Can be used as an alternative to/ alongside CS. Usually face to face meetings w/ a no. of ppl present: O, victim/ victim’s family, prison/ police officer, parole officer and a mediator (unbiased person who writes out the notes from the meeting)
RJ links to minimalisation; makes O see the true consequences of their actions, not just their minimalised ones.
New research shows this is due to plasticity; serious offenders seem to have a small amydala (part of the limbic system, which links to empathy); RJ seems to make O’s amygdalas bigger
Evaluate RJ
(+) Cost effective; for every £1 spent on RJ, the criminal justice system saves £8
(-) Relies on O being remorseful; if not then the session may become more psychologically harmful than useful.
(+) Only method of dealing w/ offending that considers both O’s and victim’s needs
(+) Quite flexible and doesn’t adopt a “one size fits all” approach like custodial sentencing does; can also be used in other settings like schools; can be adapted and tailored to the needs of each case.
