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Forensic Psychology > Offender Typologies > Flashcards

Offender Typologies Flashcards

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1
Q

Who is a sex offender?

A

Anyone. Variety of offences and offence types, not just “kiddy fiddlers”. Many personality factors, many victims. Often networks of abusers.

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2
Q

What are societal attitudes of sex offenders?

A

They are the devil. The offender breaks scoiety’s rules. Reinforces offender network. Normalisation of behaviour. Media coverage. General/mass perception. Fear. Ongoing misunderstanding.

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3
Q

How does the media present sex offenders?

A

Stranger crime. Kidnap. Crazy male offender. Can happen anywhere. Is their intention to prevent it happening, to help, to educate? Or is it to sell papers?

Sarah’s Law/Megan’s Law - naming and shaping.

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4
Q

What does a psychological risk assessment involve?

A

Static vs. Dynamic Factors.

Static - demographics, historical factors, past behaviour, range of offences.

Dynamic - accommodation, employment, relationship, alcohol misuse, deviant sexuality, cognitive distortion, emotional loneliness, poor empathy, poor plan.

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5
Q

Why does childhood and parenting have something to do with sex offenders?

A

Early parenting shapes ability to form adult attachment (Bowlby, 1969; 1973)

Beliefs about the self are formed

Disrupted childhood inhibits developing skills for later on in life

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6
Q

What is Proximity Maintenance? (Bowlby, 1969)

A

The desire to be near the people we are attached to.

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7
Q

What is meant by Safe Haven? (Bowlby, 1969)

A

Returning to the attachment figure for comfort and to avoid fear of threat.

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8
Q

What is a Secure Base? (Bowlby, 1969)

A

The attachment figure acts as a base of security from which the child can explore the surrounding environment.

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9
Q

What is Separation Distress? (Bowlby, 1969)

A

Anxiety occurs in the absence of the attachment figure.

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10
Q

What is emotional loneliness and why does it occur?

A

According to Marshall (1989), lack of intimacy leads to presence of emotional loneliness. Social isolation, lonely with few intimate relationships.

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11
Q

What did Ward et al. (1997) find about offending and attachment?

A

Sex offenders and violent offenders are more similar than SOs and non-violent. They are less self-disclosing, less physical affection, less supportive, empathetic, poor conflict resolution skills.

Relationships are superficial

Insecure intimacy > insecure attachment > emotional loneliness

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12
Q

What are the characteristics of Pre-occupied attachment style and which offence type has it been related to?

A

Rely on others, sex is intimacy leading to unfulfilment and emotional loneliness. Low self-esteem, unworthy approval of others.

Grooming, perceive relationship as mutual and romantic, less likely to use force.

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13
Q

What are the characteristics of Fearful-avoidant attachment style and which offence type has it been related to?

A

Intimacy desires but fearful, mistrust and rejection. Relationships are superficial and impersonal
Sex = intimacy, fulfilment
Partner = object

Self-focused
Use of physical violence/coercion to achieve sexual gratification

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14
Q

What are the characteristics of Dismissive-avoidant attachment style and which offence type has it been related to?

A 
Close relationships = not important
Autonomous for protection
Interpersonal hostility
Negative view of others
Blame others for lack of intimacy

Aggressive acts to gender of preferred adult partner
More likely to be physically forceful

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15
Q

What is secure attachment?

A

Positive view of self
Positive view of others
Confident
Comfortable in close relationships

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16
Q

What is pre-occupied attachment?

A 
Negative view of self
Positive view of others
Poor self image
Seeks approval and validation
As children, may have felt unworthy of love
Messages from childhood are affectionate but inconsistent and insensitive
High anxiety in relationships 
Prone to jealousy and anger
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17
Q

What is Dismissive Attachment?

A

Positive view of self
Negative view of others
Emotionally distant
Relationships unimportant

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18
Q

What is fearful attachment?

A

Negative view of self
Negative view of others
Distrust of others; fear of rejection
High anxiety in relationships, prone to jealousy, anger and mood swings

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19
Q

According to Finkelhor, what are the 4 preconditions of abuse?

A
  1. The thinking stage
  2. Overcoming internal inhibitions or ‘giving permission’
  3. Overcoming external inhibitions or ‘creating the opportunity’
  4. Overcoming the victim’s resistance
20
Q

Describe stage 1 of the Finkel Model.

A

The thinking stage.

The offender wants to offend. Emotional need, satisfaction, traced back to childhood, developmental factors, exposure to sexual activity.

Role of fantasy/masturbation - words spoken by the offender during offending, sexual arousal and reinforcement of orgasm, fantasies need to change/become old.

Planning stage.

Denial. Common statements = ‘it came out of the blue, it’s out of character, i don’t know what came over me, i only ever fantasise about loving sex with my wife, i never masturbate’

These are ‘cognitive distortions’ - twisted thinking.

21
Q

Describe Stage 2 of Finkelhor’s model?

A

Giving permission.

Cognitive distortions to avoid cognitive dissonance.

‘It’s illegal, but not in some countries, it’s illegal not immoral, i can’t control myself, its alcohol, children need to be taught about sex, women mean yes when they say no, everyone does it but they don’t get caught’

Avoid responsibility, deny victim, allow offending to continue, avoid intervention.

Place blame on victim - women out alone at night want to be raped, children are seductive, women like it rough

Convince themselves they won’t get caught - safety of networking

22
Q

Describe stage 3 of Finkelhor’s model.

A

Creating the opportunity.

Unique to offender. Similarities in offence type/same perpetrator often uses same modus operandi

Choice of method is the best way to create opportunity

Targetting, grooming etc

Spending time in isolated spot, taking particular jobs, knowing the victim (especially rape)

Staging the scene

23
Q

Describe stage 4 of Finkelhor’s model.

A

Overcoming victim resistance

Often denied ‘victim didn’t resist’

Often effective methods of reducing opportunity for resistance, direct vioelence, weapon use, intimidation, drug use, fear and grooming, justification of ‘loving relationship’

Behaviour occurs, resistance stops, in ongoing abuse, sexual contact may increase in severity and frequency

Verbal dialogue during offending is particularly powerful in revealing motivation

24
Q

What are some cognitive factors of sex offenders? (Social learning model)

A
  1. Justifying wrongful conduct
  2. Misperceiving consequences
  3. Devaluing and attributing blame to victim
25
Q

What are some statements from sex-offenders that coincide with the cognitive factors according to social learning model?

A
  1. Justifying wrongful act
    It was sex education
    My offence occurred as a result of my wife’s lack of understanding, my drinking, my drug use
    But I never had intercourse with the child…
    I was only fooling around
  2. Misperceiving consequences
    The child didn’t suffer
    I don’t care
  3. Devaluing and attributing blame to victim
    She was a whore anyway
    Most women want to be raped
26
Q

What are some implicit theories of SO’s (Ward & Keenan, 1999)?

A
  • Children as sexual beings
  • Entitlement
  • Nature of harm
  • Dangerous world
  • Uncontrollable
27
Q

What is the purpose of intervention?

A 
Not to change an individual's sexuality
Not to brainwash
Not to cure
Understanding
Prevention
Risk assessment and risk management
Analyse the nature of behaviour
Modify practice and strategies for working with these offenders
28
Q

What is the Good Lives Model? (Ward, 2004)

A

Positive psychology approach

Move away from looking at ‘risk factors’ in offender rehab

Focus on criminogenic needs of offender and how the offender changes behaviour to meet human needs

Treatment focuses on promoting good lives alongside minimising harm and risk

Promote strengths, abilities, preferences, interests, concerns, values

Human beings naturally disposed to seek primary human goods

Goods are intrinsically valuable in themselves

Involve fulfilment of human potentialities and increase in state of well-being

Treatment - give people necessary capabilities to live more fulfilling lives rather than just reduce risk factors or focus on psychological deficits

29
Q

What is aggression?

A

Usually involves any behaviour (physical, verbal) that has the goal of harming another living being that is motivated to avoid such behaviour.

Intended to exclude accidents, massochism

30
Q

How many violent crimes were committed last year (Crime Survey for England and Wales, 2016)?

A

826,000.

However, sometimes victimisation is repeated and part of a process rather than a single episode (domestic abuse)

31
Q

Are all violent offenders alike?

A

No. What about violence committed in the context of drugs or alcohol? Gang membership? Intimate relationships? Ill-treatment of young children? Paranoid psychosis? Dementia? Psychopathy? Terrorism? Mugging?

32
Q

What is the difference between hostile (reactive) and instrumental aggression?

A

Hostile aggression is regarded as a reaction, typically involving anger to events seen as provocative or threatening.

Instrumental aggression is regarded as a means to an end, more likely to be described as cold-blooded.

Some episodes appear to show elements of both instrumental and reactive! Can involve multiple factors and motives.

More useful to think about impulsive and premeditated.

33
Q

Trait or state?

A

There is a substantial degree of stability (trait) in aggressiveness over time (individuals who tend to be most aggressive at age 8 are likely to show same pattern at age 18)
But not even these people are aggressive all the time, in every situation
We have to account for why people are aggressive at some times but not others, why are some people more aggressive than others.

34
Q

What does the social learning theory (Bandura, 1977; 1986) say about why some people are aggressive more frequently than others?

A

Observational learning - seeing the behaviour of others, especially significant models

Enactive learning - performing a behaviour and experiencing consequences

Individual builds knowledge, expectations and evaluations of different styles and their effects
Behaviour that gets results is more likely to be repeated.

Draws attention to examples of aggression within family, neighbourhood or memory
What gets results is individuals specific social environment

35
Q

What are schemas?

A

Aggression arises primarily from how people make sense of their social world. Making sense becomes organised into knowledge structures (schemas) that include:
memories
beliefs

Schemas become strengthened through use; this makes them more likely to be used, across wide range of situations. They become automatic

36
Q

What is the General Aggression Model (Anderson & Bushman, 2002)?

A

Well-used/rehearsed knowledge structures, resistant to change
Influence even when not fully activated, hostile view of peoples actions, see self as victim
Rehearsal in fantasy
Bias to negative interpretations of others, events, negative arousal. Confrontation more likely
Negative arousal (anger) can exacerbate impulsivity, reliance on biases and lack of consideration of alternative interpretations, consequences, other peoples view or feelings.

Emphasises importance of situational factors converging with personal factors in episodes of aggressive behaviour.

37
Q

How does attachment affect aggression?

A

Anything but secure can affect them.

38
Q

How does gang culture affect aggression?

A

Central issue of respect. The norm is to retaliate, violent initiation rituals

Also in cultures of honour

Same with prison

39
Q

Can stress affect violent offenders?

A

The lives of homicide offenders tend to be characterised by chronically high levels of stress (Humphrey & Palmer, 1987) compared to non-violent offenders

Stress is clearly contributory factor

Stress implicated in intimate partner violence (Lila et al 2013)

40
Q

How do life events impact on violent offenders?

A

Individuals are affected and often altered by negative things that happen to them (e.g. break up, loss of job)

Personal sensitivities to certain kind of events (break up to some one with anxious attachment style)

Threat to or loss of roles, identity, self

Narrowing of thinking understress to core negative themes, rehearsed by negative events or circumstances more likely, including loss of social support

Individuals sometimes contribute to negative events that befall them anyway (bad temper can get a person sacked from a job)

SO! Above can impact on person’s knowledge, beliefs, sense of self and hence increase the likelihood of aggression. An area that needs much more research.

41
Q

What does McAdam’s theory of the personal narrative suggest?

A

Modern adults create an internalised life story or myth, in order to provide lives with unity and purpose and meaning. A story with characters and themes and a plot. Acts to shape future behaviour.

Roles include: victim, revenger, professional

42
Q

Is self-esteem important for violent offenders?

A

Yes. Unstable self-esteem - individual pre occupied with and sensitive to events seen as relevant to feelings of self worth.
Unstable self-esteem associated with anger and aggression (Kernis, 1989) and greater reactivity to events.
Kernis et al (2000) self esteem likely to be unstable when parents were critical, controlled through guilt or withdrawal or love.

43
Q

What areas should interventions for violent individuals target?

A

At the core of many anger management programmes is Novaco’s (1975) model of anger.

External events - frustration, annoyance, insult, assault

leads to…

Cognitive Processes - appraisal, inner speech

leads to…

ANGER: arousal and cognitive labelling

leads to…

Behavioural reaction - verbal and physical antagonism, passive aggression, withdrawal, avoidance

44
Q

Provide an overview of the effectiveness of interventions on violent offenders.

A

CBT- mainstream but effectiveness is inconsistent (Hough, 2010)

Therapeutic communities - resource intensive, highly selective

Good Lives Model - research evidence difficult to interpret

45
Q

What are the implications of research on violent offenders?

A

Need to pay more attention to contextual/relationship factors, e.g. in prison/hospital to encourage exploration of new perspectives

Must focus on developing stable sense of self

Need to understand how people can change

46
Q

What is the Aggression Replacement Training Programme?

A

(Goldstein & Glick, 1987), perhaps the most widely available programme for generally violent offenders. Argues that aggressive acts derive from multiple causes. Proposed that internal influences on an individual’s aggressive behaviour can be traced to three factors:

  1. a general short fall in personal, interpersonal and social-cognitive skills.
  2. overuse of aggressive and impulsive behaviours coupled with a low-level of anger control.
  3. immature, egocentric concrete style of moral reasoning.

ART programme aims to tackle these three factors. Draws on social learning theory to encourage social skills. Developed through role play, discussion and performance feedback.

Forensic Psychology (6 decks)

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