cbt treatment for offenders

Question 1

define anger-management

Answer 1

• a form of cognitive behavioural treatment where violent offenders are encouraged to recognise what triggers their anger
• and being taught techniques to help them regulate their behaviour
• the approach assumes that anger is one possible cause of offending behaviour

Question 2

describe the steps in cbt as a treatment for offenders

Answer 2

1. cognitive preparation
2. skill acquisition
3. application and practice

Question 3

explain cognitive preparation

Answer 3

• working with a trained therapist, the offender reflects on situations that have triggered their anger in the past and considers whether they could have reacted differently in a non-threatening way
• events that may have been flashpoints in the past are gradually perceived more rationally

Question 4

explain skill acquisition

Answer 4

• offenders are taught a range of behavioural techniques to help them cope more effectively with anger-provoking situations
• these may be simple steps like counting to 10 to temper our reaction to a stressful event
• this self-talk promotes calmness rather than aggression
• likely to become an automatic response if practiced regularly
• some behavioural strategies deal with the physiology of anger, such as meditation and deep breathing to control one’s emotions rather than being controlled by them

Question 5

explain application and practice

Answer 5

• the therapist devises situations in which the offender is able to demonstrate the skills they have been taught
• 1 way this is achieved is by reconstructing events when the offender lost control in the past
• this is to test whether the new techniques have not been internalised

Question 6

describe the aim of the research study for cbt as a treatment for offenders

Answer 6

jane ireland investigated anger management within an institutional setting

Question 7

describe the procedure of the research study for cbt as a treatment for offenders

Answer 7

• offenders were randomly allocated to 1 of 2 conditions
• 1 group received a cbt anger management treatment programme, the second group recieved none until later acting as a wait-list control group
• the treatment group were given 12 sessions of anger management
• 3 measures of progresses: interviews, questionnaires and a behavioural checklist
• data for all of these measures was gathered 2 weeks before and 8 weeks after treatment

Question 8

describe the findings of the research study for cbt as a treatment for offenders

Answer 8

• all of the treatment group showed 92% improvement on at least 1 measure and 48% showed improvement on the questionnaire and the behaviour checklist
• this improvement was most marked for those offenders judged to be violent before the investigation began
• control group failed to show improvement on any of the 3 measures whilst waiting

Question 9

describe the conclusions of the research study for cbt as a treatment for offenders

Answer 9

• anger management is clearly more effective than no treatment at all
• is most effective for those who have a history of violence

Question 10

what is the advantage of cbt as a treatment for offenders

Answer 10

• there is research evidence that cbt is effective in reducing offenders urge for revenge
• In Holbrooks study, 26 male prisoners with a history of aggression were chosen for training in anger management
• the prisoners were required to fill out a vengeance scale, measuring the desire for revenge before and upon completion of the treatment
• the results showed a significant reduction in post-treatment vengeance scores
• this suggests that anger management may have positive long-term outcomes, including decreasing the desire for revenge

Question 11

what is the disadvantage of cbt as a treatment for offenders

Answer 11

• a weakness is that anger management may actually have undesirable effects with particular types of violent offender
• following an enquiry into the murder of John Monckton in 2006, the home secretary Charles Clarke recommended that anger management programmes in UK prisons be scaled back on the basis that they are counter-productive for some offenders
• Monckton was murdered by Damien Hanson who, following a course of 24 anger management sessions managed to convince a parole board review panel that he should be released from prison
• anger management training appears to have increased hanson’s ability to manipulate the situation to his advantage suggesting that it may assist some prisoners in becoming more manipulative