Dr Ann Henry
Tues 13th November 2012
Forensic & Applied Cognitive Psychology
 Different
 Criminal
types of mental illness/ disorder
Justice System
 Treatments
in mental health settings
 Risk
Assessment (brief overview)
 Theories
 Sexual
of crime
Offending – paedophiles & child
molestation
Recidivism – relapse into crime
 Risk & dangerousness
 Various statistical measures: PCL-R, HCR-20
(Historical, Clinical, Risk), SVR-20 (Sexual
Violence Risk) etc.
 Risk factors: Static & Dynamic
 Static factors (e.g. age, gender, history of
violence, personality disorder, major mental
illness etc.)
 Dynamic factors (e.g. emotional & cognitive
disposition, impulsivity, active symptoms of
major mental illness, location, associates, lack
of support)

 Howitt
(2006) outlines a broad range of
theories.
 Macro-level
or Societal
 Community or locality
 Group & socialisation influence
 Individual/ Psychological
 Marxist
Conflict theory
 Merton’s
Strain Theory
 Feminist
Theory
 Marxist
 Society
conflict theory
has evolved in a state of conflict
between competing groups in society over
material resources & institutionalised power.
 Dominant class uses laws to control other
groups & maintain its command or hegemony
(political leadership)
 Merton’s
Strain Theory
 Recognises
that society’s goals (prosperity,
achievement etc.) are only available to a
limited few. The rest can only achieve goals
through deviant means.
 Others adapt to the strain by retreating into
alcoholism, drug addiction, suicide,
vagrancy.
 Feminist
 Holds
Theory
that criminality is associated with
males. Males seek to maintain power in the
gendered social system through the
deployment of violence against women &
children.
 Male control is through their access to power
over social institutions such as the law.
 Powerless men are inclined to the cruder
expressions of power which lead to their
imprisonment.
 Differential
Opportunity theory
 Explains
the patterns of crime likely to be exhibited
by individuals in terms of the range of crime
opportunities close to home.
 Different
individuals display different modes of
adjustment or adaptation to their particular social
strains.
 Subcultural
Delinquency Theories
 Differential Association Theory
 Lifestyle & Routine Activities Theory
 Social Learning Theory
 Criminogenic factors in childhood
 Subcultural
Delinquency Theories
 Youngsters
with problems especially to do
with the home & school tend to associate
with gangs & other groupings in which they
can achieve some status.
 Through
criminal activity, delinquent groups
may provide an opportunity to achieve a
sense of self-esteem.
 Differential
Association Theory
 Circumstances
of upbringing determines their
exposure to crime & pressure to commit
crime.
 Hence, learning to be a criminal applies to
different strata of society e.g. middle class
might be exposed to fraud, tax evasion etc.
 Lifestyle
 Argues
& Routine Activities Theory
that most crime is trivial & impulsive
– thus elements of opportunism (Cohen &
Felson, 1979)
 Social
Learning Theory
 Bandura
(1973, 1983) Vicarious learning
through observing other people.
 However,
doesn’t explain under what
circumstances criminal behaviour will or will
not be learnt, so has limited explanatory
power.
 Criminogenic






factors in childhood
Glueck & Glueck, 1962, 1968) claim that the following are
antecedents of antisocial & criminal behaviour:
Punitive child-rearing practices & attitudes (strict
discipline, corporal punishment, authoritarian attitudes)
Lack of love or rejection
Laxness (poor monitoring, lack of supervision)
Family disruption (separation, divorce, instability, marital
conflict)
Deviant parental characteristics (criminality, mental health
problems, substance abuse)
 Criminogenic
factors in childhood (cont)
 Yoshikawa (1995) argued that delinquency is
product of interaction of multiplicity of factors:
 Neurological & biological factors
 Low cognitive ability
 Childhood history of antisocial behaviour
 Parental substance abuse
 Violent or socially disorganised neighbourhoods
 Media violence

Criminogenic factors in childhood (cont)
Farrington (1996) claims that childhood conduct
disorder and adult Antisocial Personality Disorder
have the same aetiological precursors:
 Low family income
 Poor housing
 Large family size
 Convicted parents
 Harsh or erratic parental discipline
 Low intelligence
 Early school leaving

 Protective
factors from delinquency

Farrington (1998)

Personal Resources – resilient youngsters had
better technical/spatial intelligence, flexible
temperaments, approach-orientated, more
positive self-esteem & active coping styles
 Social Resources – resilient youngsters were
more satisfied with social support &
experienced openness, autonomy & low
conflict in their residential institution.
 Personality
Theories
 Biological Theories
 Attachment Theory
 Isomorphism hypothesis
 Personality
 Eysenck’s
Theories
biosocial theory emphasises link
between biological factors, personality &
crime.
 High extraversion, high psychoticism & high
neuroticism
 Biological
Theories
 Genetics
e.g. genetic make-up, brain
activity, hormonal imbalances
 Evolutionary theory – inherited genes
 Body shape type: mesomorph, endomorph &
ectomorph
 Evidence
is contradictory and controversial
 Attachment
theory
 Based on John Bowlby’s work in 1950s
 Bonding & attachment in infancy & early
childhood
 Internal Working Model
 Different types of attachment: Secure and
 Insecure
 Ainsworth (1970s)- classified insecure into
 Anxious-Avoidant, Anxious-Ambivalent &
Disorganised

Isomorphism hypothesis

Close relationship between the characteristics of abuse
and its effect on the victim.

Widom (1989) explored links between childhood abuse and
adult criminality.
Victims of physical abuse have highest rates of violent
offences (16% of sample)
Victims of neglect had similar levels of violence (13%)
Controls (not abused as children) had 7% risk of violent
offending in adulthood
Hence, evidence is inconclusive & other factors need to be
taken into consideration (see previous list re criminogenic
factors)




 Howitt
(2006) summarises that there is little
reliable evidence of the link between
intelligence level and crime.
 Controversial
topic as also linked to the
debate about race and intelligence.
 Constructions
 Social
 Cultural
 Historical
of crime
 Media
coverage – recent Jimmy Saville case
& other cases of paedophilia/ child sexual
abuse/ abusers
 Extreme hostility & negative stigma towards
paedophiles
 Recidivism comparatively low
 Megan’s law (USA) Megan abducted &
murdered in 1994
 Controversial & inconclusive research on role
of pornography & sexual offending
 Internet paedophiles
 paedophiles
 Rapists
& child molesters
(cover in lecture 4 on Tues 20th Nov)
 Classifications
of child molesters (Groth &
Birnbaum, 1978)
 Fixated
Offenders
 Developmentally
fixated on a permanent or
temporary basis. Sexual interest in children
rather than adults.
 Regressed
 Men
Offenders
matured in their sexuality but return to
an earlier level of psychosexual
development.
 Psychosexual history shows primary interest
in peer aged or adult individuals, rather than
younger ones
 How
common is paedophilia?
 Unclear as depends on definition of sexual
abuse used e.g. indecent assault, gross
indecency, buggery, intercourse, rape.
 Non-paedophile sexual arousal – conflicting
findings (Hall et al, 1995)
 Youthful
offenders
 Graves et al (1996) in USA found that up to
half of child sexual abuse carried out by
persons under age of 21
 Theories
of Paedophilia
 Preconditions
model
 Psychotherapeutic/ cognitive model
 Sexualisation model
 Pathways model

Preconditions model of child molestation

Araji & Finkelhor (1985)
1) Emotional congruence with children (lack selfesteem, psychosocially immature, may have need to
dominate)
2) Social arousal by children (child pornography,
hormonal abnormalities/ imbalances)
3) Blockages preventing adult contact (lack effective
social skills, problems relating to adult females,
repressive sexual socialisation in childhood)
4) Disinhibition of norms against adult/child sex
(offenders may be senile, alcohol may decrease
inhibitions, incest-tolerant subculture)




 Psychotherapeutic/
 Suggests
cognitive model
4 steps
 1) Cognitive distortions/ distorted thinking
e.g. having sex with a child is a good way of
an adult teaching a child about sex. Beliefs
about sexual nature of children.
 2) Grooming (bribes of sweets, other treats,
trips out, threats of violence)
 3) Planning through fantasy
 4) Denial – denying the consequences of their
actions
 Sexualisation
model
 Howitt (1995) Experience of sexual abuse in
childhood is a developmental process which
can lead to paedophilia.
 Early
sexual abuse – especially if extreme or
repeated - possible sexual experience with
peers- adolescent paedophile career –
paedophile adult
 Controversial theory as women are more
likely to be victims of childhood sexual, but
less likely to be sexual offenders
 Pathways
model (Ward & Siegert, 2002)
 Multi-factorial model – combining elements
of previous models/ theories
 Distal & Proximal factors
 Distal factors (predispositions e.g. genetic/
childhood development)
 Proximal factors (that might trigger
predispositions e.g. environment, negative
mood state)
4
psychological mechanisms
 1)
Intimacy & social skills deficits
 2) Deviant sexual scripts
 3) Emotional dysregulation
 4) Cognitive distortions
 Children
as sexual objects
 Entitlement- to have their sexual needs met
 Dangerous world – children seen as reliable &
trusting & gives offender comfort against
danger
 Uncontrollable – claims not to be on control
of own actions & blames outside factors e.g.
drugs/ alcohol
 Nature of Harm – believes not all sexual
activity is harmful & children can benefit
from sexual activity with adults
 Internet
Paedophile offending
 Controversial topic – whether linked to
contact paedophilia or not
 Robbins
& Darlington (2003) 27,000 people in
the world go onto child pornography sites
every day. I million images of child sexual
abuse in circulation.
 Internet chat rooms
 Sexual fantasy vs contact sexual acts with
children
 Risk
Assessment
 Theories
 Sexual
of crime
Offending – paedophiles & child
molestation
Murphy, W.D. & McGrath, R. (2008).
 Best Practices in Sex Offender Treatment, Prison
Service Journal, issue 178, pgs 3-9.
 Strickland, S.M (2008). Female Sex Offenders:
Exploring Issues of Personality, Trauma and
Cognitive Distortions, J Interpers Violence 2008;
23; p. 474-489.
 Towl, G.J., Farrington., D.P., Crighton, D.A. &
Hughes, G. (2008). Dictionary of Forensic
Psychology, Devon, Willan Publishing.
 Ward. T. & Stewart, C. (2003). The relationship
between human needs and criminogenic needs,
Psychology, Crime & Law, September 2003, Vol.
9(3), pp. 219 /224

 No
Lecture on Mon 19th Nov
 Rapists
 Treatment
of Sexual offenders
 Violent Offending