Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2007. / Title from title screen (site viewed Oct. 10, 2007). PDF text: viii, 75, p. : ill. UMI publication number: AAT 3259074. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2005. / Title from title screen (site viewed May 23, 2007). PDF text: v, 58 p. : ill. ; 5.42Mb UMI publication number: AAT 3250375. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.

Although female inmates are considered to be the population who are at high risk of committing suicide, little attention has been paid to this field, since most of suicide in correctional facilities are typically committed by males. This paper attempted to investigate some psychological factors which may affect female inmates’ suicidal ideation. Specifically, this paper focused on the role of psychache, intense and chronic psychological pain which leads to suicide. The data was collected from 95 female inmates in two Canadian prisons. The results indicated that psychache was the only factor which predicted the participants’ level of suicidal ideation. Therefore, it is suggested that the screening tools which focus on psychache will be useful in examining the inmates’ risk of suicide. Also, it shows that for the successful rehabilitation, providing the treatment which precisely addresses psychache among inmates is important.

To date no study has explored persecutory delusions in people who commit sexual offences, and whether attributional style and self-concept are any different between sex offenders with and without persecutory delusions. The present study is preceded by a literature review exploring literature on mentally ill sexually offenders. As this area of research is extremely limited to further understanding of mentally ill sex offenders, literature on individuals with persecutory delusions, specifically attributional style and self-esteem will be presented. Finally, research on attributions and self-esteem in sexual offenders is reviewed. The literature review concludes with implications for future research and clinical interventions. This is followed by a research study that aims to explore the relationship between attributional style and self-concept in men with persecutory delusions who commit sexual offences. Sex offenders with persecutory delusions, sex offenders without delusions and normal controls were compared on implicit and explicit measures of attributional style and self-esteem. The three groups were found to have similar attributional styles and levels of self-esteem and no significant differences were found between the three groups. The results are discussed in light of these findings. Limitations of the study are discussed together with future implications for research and treatment of mentally ill sex offenders.

This thesis explores the experiences of imprisonment of men held in HMP Stafford, an English medium-security prison for men convicted of sexual offences. Sex offenders constitute a significant proportion of the prison population – almost one in five sentenced adult men have been convicted of a sex offence – but they have been consistently overlooked by prison researchers. In this thesis, I redress this imbalance by exploring the experiences of a hitherto overlooked group, and generate some theoretical insights which will be of relevance to wider studies of imprisonment. The thesis is based on an in-depth ethnographic study conducted over a five-month period. It included 42 long semi-structured interviews with prisoners, 12 shorter semi-structured interviews with prison officers, and extended periods of participant observation of day-to-day life in the prison. It focuses on three areas which were of particular salience to these men, all of which have been explored in detail in existing studies of mainstream imprisonment: first, the ways in which they adapted to their sentence; second, the sorts of social and moral communities they formed amongst themselves; and third, the relationships they formed with staff and the way the prison’s power operated on them. All three of these areas – adaptation, moral community and power – were inflected by two issues of even greater significance: the fact that they were serving sentences for sexual offences, and their resulting social identities as ‘sex offenders’. By drawing attention to this issue, I hope to move on from the conventional mode of understanding the prison, as a disciplinary institution structured solely by power, to one which takes more seriously the moral functions and effects of the prison as a condemnatory institution.

abstract: The purpose of this preliminary study is to determine if sentencing disparities exist between male and female teachers who have been convicted of sexual misconduct with a student in Maricopa County, Arizona over a ten-year period. The hypothesis is that male teachers convicted of sexual misconduct with a student will receive harsher punishment than their female counterparts. In addition, this research will analyze the sentencing decisions of Arizona judges and prosecutors through plea-bargaining when compared with the presumptive sentence set by the Arizona Legislature. Issues that will be addressed include: a brief review of gender disparities in sentencing, sex offender sentencing, Arizona's rules of criminal procedure, and a review of the Arizona Revised Statutes pertaining to sexual crimes as well as the Arizona Supreme Court sentencing guidelines. The data set consists of fifteen different Maricopa County teachers who committed a sexual offense against a student and were convicted of that offense from February 2000 through September 2009. According to the results of this study, male teachers do receive harsher penalties than their female counterparts within Maricopa County. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.S. Criminology and Criminal Justice 2012

Supervision of sexual offenders can only work to reduce risk when it monitors and addresses factors related to both general and sexual recidivism. It is well known that many sexual offenders commit other types of offences, such as violent and general offending, but other types of offenders rarely commit sexual offences (Hanson & Bussiere, 1998). It is therefore necessary to distinguish sexual offenders from other offenders when we study the different recidivism types, and the key risk factors for the prediction of any reoffending. This study assessed the predictive utility of several commonly used psychometrics in Northern Ireland, namely the Stable and Acute 2007, Risk Matrix 2000, and the STEP battery. Risk assessments were collected from a sample of 325 participants each of whom had been convicted of a sexual offence in Northern Ireland. The data is archival, sourced from risk assessments and psychometrics conducted on offenders subject to supervision under the Public Protection Arrangements for Northern Ireland (PPANI) between 2008 and 2010. Overall levels of risk and individual risk factors as measured by these instruments were compared to rates of reoffending. A number of salient individual factors were identified from the sample, such as capacity for relationship stability, sexual deviancy, rejection of supervision and victim access, which links to distinguishing typologies of offending in sexual offenders supervised within the Public Protection Arrangements for N. Ireland (PPANI). While it was not possible to statistically link individual factors 9 to re-offending rates, results indicated that overall risk levels obtained by all three assessment tools have predictive utility in relation to non-sexual offending and breaches of probation conditions or licensing. Statistical analysis of sexual re-offending was not possible due to the small number of such offences within this sample. Findings from this study have both strategic and practical implications for the management of sexual offenders in N. Ireland. The main findings were that all three instruments predicted offending behaviour, breaches of probation, or breaches of licence. Recommendations and directions to inform future policy and practice are outlined in the Discussion Section.

M.A. / South Africa has an exceptionally high divorce rate. The stressful nature of parental separation and divorce results in higher susceptibility of children to psychological, social, academical and health problems. Parental ability to deal with the divorce transition largely influences the long term adjustment of children after divorce. An effective empirically researched based parentfocused educational programme which addresses the most essential divorce related issues and the effects thereof on children, can be of exceptional value. Supplying parents with sufficient knowledge and information regarding divorce as a process, as well as the way it effects children of different ages en developmental stages, will assist the parents in making better choices concerning the children. By educating parents about the effect of prolonged interparental conflict on children and by supplying them with constructive conflict management skills, the negative consequences of divorce on children may be minimised or even eliminated. In this study an educational programme (k.i.d.s.) was assessed by using a one group pretest- postest design. K.i.d.s. is a short, informative and user friendly educational programme. It comprises two, two hour sessions, scheduled two weeks apart. Statistical significance was achieved when pretest-posttest results were compared regarding knowledge on conflict and the divorce process. Participants also reported a significant decline regarding negative conflict behaviour. An overall high level of consumer satisfaction with the program was reported. Despite the small study sample, the positive results of this study proves the k.i.d.s. program to be a potential promising preventative and intervention method for use with divorcing parents.

In-depth interviews and psychometric tests were conducted with 20 young, South African male, hands-on sex offenders, between the ages of seven and 15 years. These offenders were referred by both the legal system and the welfare and health system. The data was gathered for the purpose of drawing up a descriptive profile of salient psychological and sociological characteristics of this population group, the patterns of offenses, the circumstances under which the offenses occurred and victims selected. Results showed that half the sample had committed prior sex offenses. The majority of young sex offenders had a history of consenting sexual interactions, had committed a non-sexual offense and engaged in a range of other antisocial behaviours. Half the sample reported a history of physical or sexual abuse (under-reporting of such victimization experiences was suspected). Typically, the young sex offender w:~s sexually naive and had not received any suitable sex education. He was usually a scholar although his school attendance was often infrequent and he was likely to have failed one or more standards. His intelligence quotient was most likely to fall in or below the borderline range of functioning. He tended to be either socially isolated and socially anxious or alternatively reported having a number of friends and appeared to have adequate social skills. His home environment was typically characterized by overcrowding, alcohol abuse and domestic violence. A significant male relative of his was likely to have committed a criminal offense. In his community environment, he regularly witnessed violence and sexual activity. The sex offenses were usually carried out with a co-perpetrator in a variety of venues. The victim was usually known and younger (mean age = seven years) than the perpetrator (mean age = 12 years). The overall results suggest that young sex offenders commit an array of sexual offenses that do not represent sexual experimentation, but rather indicate a developing pattern of sexual deviance. Comparisons between the above profile and the literature findings are explored. Finally, recommendations for structural changes, assessment procedures, additional future research pessibilities and guidelines for the development of appropriate - treatment programmes are outlined.

No description available.