Assessing criminal thought content: preliminary validation of the criminal thought content inventory (CTCI)

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a measure of criminal thought content entitled the Criminal Thought Content Inventory (CTCI). The 30-item CTCI generates a total score and scores for three individual dimensions or scales: Negative Attitudes toward Authority (NAA), Positive Attitudes toward Deviance (PAD), and Criminal Identity (CID). Students from two universities (N?=?335 and 456) completed the CTCI, along with measures of criminal thought process and delinquent behavior. According to the results of several analyses, the CTCI possesses adequate internal consistency, good test-retest reliability, and adequate concurrent validity. Confirmatory factor analyses performed on both samples offered support for the three-dimensional structure of the CTCI and an item response theory analysis indicated that over 80% of the items loaded at least moderately on a single latent trait. These results suggest that the CTCI possesses the requisite psychometric properties to warrant inclusion in studies investigating criminal thought content.     

Criminal Social Identity of Recidivistic Prisoners: The Role of Self-Esteem, Family and Criminal Friends

The aim of this paper is to focus on the factors that can significantly contribute to the presence of criminal social identity within a sample of recidivistic prisoners (N?=?312) using structural equation modelling. Six latent variables were identified: criminal associations with close friends, positive self-esteem, negative self-esteem, cognitive centrality, in-group affect, and in-group ties. Results suggest that criminal social identity is characterized by various internal and external factors including the direct effects of associations with criminal friends, which is influenced by insufficient or absent parental supervision at an early stage of development. It was also found that early peer rejection is not a sufficient predictor of associations with criminal friends and the criminal social identity. This study also provides further support for Social Identity Theory with regards to the role of self-esteem in the development of criminal social identification.     

Predictors of re-offending in German substance-abusers in legal detention: a prospective population-based cohort study

This study aimed to evaluate whether the elapsed time after release to first re-offense is longer for those who complete coerced forensic addiction treatment than for those who fail to complete the treatment. It is also aimed to identify predictors of re-offending for both those who complete such treatments as compared with those who do not. Two hundred and sixty-one patients discharged from five German forensic addiction clinics were investigated on 65 anamnestic, socio-demographic, and therapeutic process variables. One hundred and fifty-one patients were prematurely discharged and returned to prison (group A; time at risk [TAR] = 58.7 months), 110 finished treatment successfully (group B; TAR = 44.2 months). Federal Criminal Register data were used for follow-up. Univariate survival analyses and multivariate stepwise Cox-regression models were computed. Twelve predictors in group A revealed a four-factor model: age at admission to treatment, duration of concurrent prison sentence, number of entries in the criminal register, and attendance at prior substitution programs. The model for group B covered five out of eight predictors: regular working activities before first diagnosis of mental illness, type of main offense, (secondary) traffic offenses, outpatient rehabilitation treatments, and escapes during treatment. Successful completers of forensic addiction treatment are slower to re-offend than non-completers.     

Asymmetries in prior conviction reasoning: truth suppression effects in child protection contexts

Abstract

In three empirical studies we examined how people reason about prior convictions in child abuse cases. We tested whether the disclosure of similar prior convictions prompts a mental representation or an additive probative value (Criminal Justice Act, 2003). Asymmetrical use of similar priors were observed in three studies. A pilot study showed that disclosure of a second prior did not contribute a weight equivalent to that of the first disclosure. Study 1 showed jurors did not see left-handed evidence (i.e. matching victim bruising) as more indicative of guilt than right-handedness unless a prior conviction was present, and the presence of priors suppressed the generation of alternative possibilities indicative of innocence. Study 2 showed that disclosure did not decrease community ratings of re-offending propensity and dangerousness as much as a similar prior conviction increased them. We consider the results in the context of a new psychological theory of prior conviction bias and the consequences for the implementation of Section 100 of the Criminal Justice Act (2003).     

Personality traits in suicidal and homicidal subjects with schizophrenia

Paranoid schizophrenia is characterised by an increased risk of suicide and homicide. Little is known about the influence of personality dimensions as determinants for suicidal and homicidal behaviour within this condition. We assessed the differences among suicidal, homicidal and non-aggressive adult male in-patients with ICD-10 paranoid schizophrenia. The clinical assessments included structured psychiatric interviews and reports on harmful alcohol use and suicide attempts. The personality dimensions were assessed with the Big Five Inventory-10. The study recruited 264 patients divided into three groups: suicide attempters (N = 62), homicide group (N = 70), and a comparative control group (N = 132). To examine how the clinical subgroups differed from the comparative sample in the studied variables, a multinomial regression was performed. Each subgroup was considered a nominal outcome variable and the log odds of the outcomes were modelled as a linear combination of the predictor variables. Neuroticism or emotional instability was the only personality dimension that was different among the study subgroups: a lower level of neuroticism was found in the homicide group. Other risk factors such as age, education, relationship status and history of self-aggressive behaviour could potentially distinguish these subgroups of paranoid schizophrenia patients.     

Wiping the Slate Clean: Reforming Scots Law's Approach to Evidence of the Accused's Bad Character

This paper discusses the Scottish Law Commission (SLC)'s Report on Similar Fact Evidence and the Moorov Doctrine, which proposes revolutionary changes to the way in which Scots law deals with evidence of the accused's bad character, including his previous convictions. The article sets these proposals in context by explaining the existing Scots law, and comparing it to the English provisions on bad character evidence contained in the Criminal Justice Act 2003. This comparison reveals similarities between the responses of the two jurisdictions. It is remarkable that the SLC did not consider English law to be a viable model for reform, choosing instead to propose legislation which would simply deem certain pieces of bad character evidence relevant in criminal trials. The second part of the paper explains why these proposals should not be implemented.     

大清刑律草案签注考论

1907年大清刑律草案签注是研究《大清刑律》和"礼法之争"不可或缺的重要资料.本文利用诸多历史文献,对1908—1909年之间,中央部院、地方督抚的签注做了系统梳理,考证其文献来源、整理要点、上呈过程和表现形式,澄清以往研究中不清楚甚至错误的地方,辨析了签注的形成过程及其中的倾向性意见,分析了签注在《大清刑律》制定中影响和作用有限的原因.1907年大清刑律草案作为沈家本在法律领域贯彻"思想革命"的代表作,其得失是与政治领域的立宪运动同步的,由签注所引发的"礼法之争"的本质不是中西、新旧之争,而是法律领域"改良还是革命"的"主义"之争.1907年大清刑律草案既与中国自身的状况相脱节,也不符合法律自身的演进规律,是一次有着严重缺陷的立法实践.     

Respectful Inter-Group Interactions: A Method for Revising Group Attachment?

In the present study, we investigated whether respectful treatment shaped participants’ perceptions of procedural justice during interactions with out-group authorities, and whether the effects of respectful treatment would extend to participants’ attachment to their in-group and to the authority’s social group. We hypothesised that the nature of the relationship between the out-group and a participant’s social group (diametrically opposed vs. not opposed to one another) would moderate the effect of respect on participants’ procedural justice judgements, attachment to the in-group, and attachment to the out-group. Participants (n = 186) read a short, fictitious news story describing an interaction between a fellow in-group member (the subordinate) and an authority. As predicted, respectful treatment increased perceptions of procedural justice and also led participants to feel more attached to the authority’s social group. Contrary to expectation, participants’ attachment to their in-group was not affected by treatment, but instead by authority group membership: interactions with an authority from a social group diametrically opposed to the participant’s social group led participants to become significantly more attached to their in-group, regardless of the authority’s behaviour (respectful vs. disrespectful) in the interaction. Results are discussed in terms of practical strategies for authorities to effectively manage interactions with out-group subordinates.     

Applying the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) to studies of mental health provision for juvenile offenders: a research note

The degree of reporting transparency in randomised controlled trials (RCTs) is an important factor when the validity of any results is being considered. The use of the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) guidelines has improved the reporting standards of RCTs in many healthcare journals, but these guidelines have yet to be adopted universally. In this study, we applied the CONSORT Statement to RCTs identified from a systematic review of mental health provisions for juvenile offenders. We assessed the number of CONSORT items reported in each trial and investigated the extent of endorsement by journal editors. The findings showed that some items were fully endorsed (e.g., the aim of the study) whereas other items, such as sample size estimations, were not presented in any of the trials. A minority of journals supported the use of the CONSORT Statement in their journals’ instructions for authors. The overall reporting standard for this sample of trials was, therefore, mixed. Comparisons with trials conducted in other disciplines are discussed, and suggestions for improving reporting standards are presented.

关于调整中国刑法结构的思考

There are two problems with regard to the structure of Chinese criminal law. Firstly, the crimes that are defined in the Chinese criminal code are approximately equal to the felonies that are defined in the western criminal codes, while re-education through labor and penalty for administration of public security similar to the misdemeanors and violations in western countries respectively are not included in the Chinese criminal code, and meanwhile the security measures have not been systematized. Secondly, crimes and penalties, except in criminal law, can not be prescribed in administrative laws and economic laws, and such single track system of conviction and sentencing fails to satisfy the current social situation in which the number of mala prohibia has increased so much. The way to reform Chinese criminal law structure: Firstly, it is to establish a double track system, where mala prohibia should be prescribed in the related administrative laws or economic laws; secondly, a comprehensive criminal code should be reformulated in which felonies, misdemeanors, violations and security measures are all included. Liu Renwen, Ph.D, is a senior research fellow at the Law Institute of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. His major works include: A Preliminary Study of Criminal Policy (2004), Economic Analysis in the Integration of Criminal Law (2007), Crimes of Environment and National Resources (2004); and research articles, such as: Reform of the re-education through labor (Criminal Law Review, 2001), Enhance the quality of death penalty cases through the procedure (New Reports in Criminal Law, 2006).     

Human capital and social capital in criminal networks: introduction to the special issue on the 7th Blankensee Colloquium

This essay and review on criminal network analysis provides an introduction to the special issue “Human Capital and Social Capital in Criminal Networks”. It traces the history of the application of network analysis in the study of organized crime since the early 1970s. It argues that while criminal network analysis has brought a new level of methodological rigor to the study of organized crime, a number of limitations have become apparent. These include the problem of missing data and the challenges encountered in adequately capturing latent structures, individual characteristics of network members and socio-ecological conditions.     

Power and Criminal Law: Criminalization of Conduct Norms in a Colonial Regime

A content analysis of the published materials in the Journal of Criminal Justice: An International Journal (JCJ), and the International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice (IJCACJ) was undertaken to evaluate if the international functional agenda of the journals to fill the present need for dissemination of new information, ideas and methods (to both practitioners and academicians in the criminal justice area) has been achieved. It was found that there is very limited international discourse currently going on in the Journal of Criminal Justice and that the bulk of the discussion in print in the journal is virtually inter- and intra-American. On the other hand, it was found that a substantial number of materials published in the International Journal of Comparative and Applied Criminal Justice emanated from outside the United States, were written by non-U.S. practitioners and academicians, and focused on non-American criminal justice systems. It was concluded that in terms of regional composition of both journals' editorial staff, regional distribution of articles by source of origin and regional distribution of articles by subject content, the IJCACJ is more global in scope than the JCJ. The net result is that this journal is more “international” because it is seen to be more likely to generate and promote cross-cultural dialogue in the criminology/criminal justice enterprise.     

《大清现行刑律》与民初民事法源——大理院对“现行律民事有效部分”的适用

“现行律民事有效部分”是民初一种主要而又特殊的民事法源，源自《大清现行刑律》，但在立法层面，《大清现行刑律》从“刑律”到“民法”转变的任务并未完成，即未形成统一法律文本样态的“现行律民事有效部分”。司法机关适用该法源时面临着三大难题：无统一明确的内容该如何适用？相关律(例)文未去刑罚化如何用于民事审判？旧的律(例)文如何适应新的社会情势和法律制度？大理院以判例和解释例，确认并明确了“现行律民事有效部分”的内容范围，从原刑律条款转化出民事效果，并通过法律解释、类推适用和假借等方式，保证了其在民初司法实践中的正常适用；经由法律概念的对接、民法理论的融合和权利观念的渗透，实现了对“现行律民事有效部分”的创新，使其成为中国民法近代化历程中新旧之法融合的一个节点和枢纽，构成近代中国法制史上的重要一环。     

国际刑事法院行使管辖权与国家的同意

国际刑事法院的正式建立涉及到一系列国际法律问题 ,尤其是关于国际刑事法院的管辖权方面的问题 ,由于往往涉及国家主权 ,复杂而敏感。因而 ,从国际法原理的角度 ,对这些问题进行深入探讨 ,极为必要。特别是我国政府暂时还没有批准《国际刑事法院规约》 ,也没有签字 ,而其原因主要集中于国际刑事法院有关管辖权方面的某些规定 ,所以更应从国际法原理的角度出发对所涉及的有关问题予以深入分析与客观评介 ,尤其是对规约有关管辖权方面某些重要条款存在的不恰当理解更有必要予以澄清 ,以期为将来我国考虑加入《国际刑事法院规约》、成为国际刑事法院的成员国提供一些参考。     

Identifying risks for male street gang affiliation: a systematic review and narrative synthesis

Gang violence has increased in recent years. Individuals appear to be joining gangs at younger ages, and many have suffered historic maltreatment. Subsequent exposure to violence can result in profound consequences, including acute psychological harm. This review aims to identify predictive risk factors for male street gang affiliation. A systematic literature search was conducted utilising PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, Medline, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and the Social Policy and Practice databases (from the databases’ inception to 3 April 2015). From this search, n = 244 peer-reviewed papers were included in an initial scoping review, and n = 102 thereafter met criteria for a systematic review; a narrative synthesis follows. Gang members have typically faced numerous historic adversities across multiple domains; individual, family, peers, school and community. Cumulative factors generated an independent risk. The meta-narrative described an overarching failure to safeguard vulnerable individuals, with the motivation for gang affiliation hypothetically arising from an attempt to have their basic needs met. Clinical and research recommendations were made to inform early intervention policy and practice.     

Criminality,thinking patterns and treatment effects – evaluation of the Swedish cognitive intervention programme ‘new challenges’ targeting adult men with a criminal lifestyle

The cognitive intervention programme ‘New Challenges’ targeting adult men with a criminal lifestyle was evaluated in a pilot study. The participants were divided into a cognitive treatment group (n = 32) and a control group (n = 11). In the control group, six participants had no treatment and five participated in 12-step treatment. The participants were measured pre and post using the Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking Styles (PICTS), the abridged version of sense of coherence (SOC), Positive and Negative Affect Scale, and Bergström’s quality of programme delivery (QPD). The results of the treatment group showed that criminal thinking patterns dropped significantly from high values to close to normal level. SOC and positive affect increased significantly in the treatment group. Both SOC and positive affect showed positive correlation with QPD. Regarding the possible influence of the 12-step treatment, there was no difference in the control group between participants receiving 12-step treatment and those not receiving treatment. The main conclusion is that the cognitive treatment programme ‘New Challenges’ can contribute to reduced criminal thinking and increased SOC and positive affect, which may prove to be important precursors of reduced criminality.     

Absurd Asymmetry – a Comment on R v Cottrell and Fletcher1 and BM,KK and DP (Petitioners) v Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission2

This note examines two cases in which English and Scottish courts have insisted that the English and Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commissions adopt the same definition and approach as them to alleged ‘miscarriages of justice’ in order to reduce the number of potential referrals and increase finality, and to reduce the challenge posed by these Commissions to the courts' authority in the legal sphere. The authors consider whether the courts' approach is either necessary or appropriate.     

Using social norms to reduce men's rape proclivity: Perceived rape myth acceptance of out-groups may be more influential than that of in-groups

Abstract

Feedback about a reference group's rape myth acceptance (RMA) has been shown to affect men's rape proclivity (Bohner, Siebler, & Schmelcher, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 32, 286–297, 2006). In two experiments with male university students (total N=294), this research was extended by varying the in-group vs out-group status of the reference group. Results showed that feedback about other men's RMA influenced self-reported RMA (Experiment 1) and rape proclivity (Experiments 1 and 2). Overall, participants' rape proclivity was affected by feedback about both in-groups' RMA and out-groups' RMA. The strongest reduction of rape proclivity was produced by low-RMA feedback about an out-group that participants expected to be high in RMA (Experiment 2). Implications for theory and intervention are discussed.     

犯罪概念及其特征的结构分析

犯罪是事实特征与法律特征的统一,也是内容特征和形式特征的统一。事实特征或者说内容特征,并不仅限于社会危害性,而是社会危害性这一个质的因素与应受刑罚处罚性(简称当罚性或应罚性)这一个量的因素的统一。法益侵害与社会危害性具有相通性。     

Assessing effective participation in vulnerable juvenile defendants

Effective participation in trial is outlined under article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights and refers to the ability to understand and engage in trial. Juvenile defendants are often referred to psychologists or psychiatrists by their solicitors to establish ‘effective participation’ capacity. In the USA, key components to participate effectively are defined and standardised assessments available. In the UK, no formal measures exist. A consecutive series of 20 adolescents aged 12–20 years, referred by their solicitors to our service, were assessed using a standardised battery and a semi-structured interview designed to assess effective participation. Fifty-five per cent had at least one neurodevelopmental disorder. Low IQ was common and 50% had age-equivalent language scores below 10 years. Rates of depression, anxiety and PTSD were high. Knowledge about trial was poor. These findings have implications for Criminal Justice System professionals and to ensure fair trials for young defendants.