Suchergebnisse

For a particular subgroup of individuals with severe paraphilic disorders and a high risk of sexual recidivism, the combination of sex drive–reducing medications and psychotherapy is a promising treatment approach. The present quasi-experimental study aims at comparing differences in clinical characteristics and dynamic risk factors between persons receiving (+TLM, n = 38) versus not receiving (−TLM, n = 22) testosterone-lowering medications (TLMs). Individuals receiving TLM were more frequently diagnosed with paraphilic disorders. Neither the criminal history nor average risk scores differed between the two groups. In the +TLM, Stable-2007 scores showed a stronger decrease after TLM treatment was started. This accounted especially for the general and sexual self-regulation subscales. Individual variations in risk, however, were not predicted by TLM but were significantly related to treatment duration and Psychopathy Checklist–Revised (PCL-R) Factor I. Paraphilic patients with problems in self-regulatory abilities seem to profit most from pharmacological sex drive–reducing treatment. Furthermore, therapists seem to underestimate deviant sexual fantasies in medicated patients.

A Five-Level Risk and Needs system has been proposed as a common language for standardizing the meaning of risk levels across risk/need tools used in corrections. Study 1 examined whether the Five-Levels could be applied to BARR-2002R ( N = 2,390), an actuarial tool for general recidivism. Study 2 examined the construct validity of BARR-2002R risk levels in two samples of individuals with a history of sexual offending ( N = 1,081). Study 1 found reasonable correspondence between BARR-2002R scores and four of the five standardized risk levels (no Level V). Study 2 found that the profiles of individuals in Levels II, III, and IV were mostly consistent with expectations; however, individuals in the lowest risk level (Level I) had more criminogenic needs than expected based on the original descriptions of the Five-Levels. The Five-Level system was mostly successful when applied to BARR-2002R. Revisions to this system, or the inclusion of putatively dynamic risk factors and protective factors, may be required to improve alignment with the information provided by certain risk tools.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the deterrent effect of imprisonment. Using data on offenders convicted of felonies in 1993 in Jackson County (Kansas City), Missouri, we compare recidivism rates for offenders sentenced to prison with those for offenders placed on probation. We find no evidence that imprisonment reduces the likelihood of recidivism. Instead, we find compelling evidence that offenders who are sentenced to prison have higher rates of recidivism and recidivate more quickly than do offenders placed on probation. We also find persuasive evidence that imprisonment has a more pronounced criminogenic effect on drug offenders than on other types of offenders.

In this study, we examine comparative rates of recidivism for Colorado inmates released from a private reentry center and public facilities. Using a sample of 6,102 inmates released from 2008 to 2012, we measure overall recidivism and recidivism for a new crime. Applying a quasi-experimental methodology, we find that overall rates of recidivism are comparable. Prior to matching, 46.8% of the treatment and 61.3% of the comparison group recidivated, and the difference is statistically significant. However, after matching on relevant covariates, the difference was reduced to nonsignificance. In contrast, those released from the private facility are more likely to return to prison for a new offense. Approximately 14% of those in the private facility committed a new crime compared with 9% prematching and 8% postmatching. Despite these modest differences in the rate of recidivism, the overall time to return to prison is comparable between the groups.

A vast body of past research on correctional risk assessment instruments supports their validity in predicting measures of recidivism across diverse offender population samples. Despite similarities in the risk factors for victimization and offending, little is known about whether the generalizability of these actuarial tools can be extended beyond recidivism to predict victimization measures as well. Utilizing a sample of approximately 1,900 recently released male and female prisoners, this study examined whether measures of risk drawn from the Level of Service Inventory–Revised: Screening Version (LSI-R:SV) could predict one's risk of victimization. Analyses provide evidence that the risk scores and levels were significantly related to both recidivism and victimization. Policy and prevention implications for correctional assessment and offender treatment are discussed.

Risk assessment and treatment for sexual offenders should focus on individual characteristics associated with recidivism risk. Although it is possible to conduct risk assessments based purely on empirical correlates, the most useful evaluations also explain the source of the risk. In this review, the authors propose that the basic requirements for a psychologically meaningful risk factor are (a) a plausible rationale that the factor is a cause of sexual offending and (b) strong evidence that it predicts sexual recidivism. Based on the second of these criteria, the authors categorize potential risk factors according to the strength of the evidence for their relationship with offending. The most strongly supported variables should be emphasized in both assessment and treatment of sexual offenders. Further research is required, however, to establish causal connections between these variables and recidivism and to examine the extent to which changes in these factors leads to reductions in recidivism potential.

This study addresses the longstanding and contentious debate on the merits of transferring cases from juvenile to adult court with the expectation of more certain, severe, or effective punishment. It compares the severity, certainty and celerity of sanctions for N=800 15‐ and 16‐year‐old adolescents charged with robbery and burglary in juvenile court in New Jersey with identical offenders in matched communities in New York State whose cases are adjudicated in criminal court, and determines the effectiveness of these sanctions in reducing recidivism and reincarceration. Results showed that incarceration rates were higher for adolescents sentenced in the criminal court, but sentence lengths were comparable. However, recidivism rates were significantly lower for adolescents sentenced in the juvenile court, regardless of sentence type or severity. The results suggest that efforts to criminalize adolescent offending may not produce the desired results and may in fact be counterproductive. There is no support for legislative efforts to eliminate the special jurisprudence for adolescent crimes or the separate jurisdiction for juvenile offenders.

This article develops a Bayesian approach for estimating panel quantile regression with binary outcomes in the presence of correlated random effects. We construct a working likelihood using an asymmetric Laplace (AL) error distribution and combine it with suitable prior distributions to obtain the complete joint posterior distribution. For posterior inference, we propose two Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithms but prefer the algorithm that exploits the blocking procedure to produce lower autocorrelation in the MCMC draws. We also explain how to use the MCMC draws to calculate the marginal effects, relative risk and odds ratio. The performance of our preferred algorithm is demonstrated in multiple simulation studies and shown to perform extremely well. Furthermore, we implement the proposed framework to study crime recidivism in Quebec, a Canadian Province, using a novel data from the administrative correctional files. Our results suggest that the recently implemented "tough-on-crime" policy of the Canadian government has been largely successful in reducing the probability of repeat offenses in the post-policy period. Besides, our results support existing findings on crime recidivism and offer new insights at various quantiles.