Treatment programmes for adolescents who commit sexual offences: Dropout and recidivism

This paper reviews the state of research into treatment programmes for adolescent sexual offenders, focusing first on treatment dropout, then on recidivism studies. Pre-treatment variables, which may predict dropout from programmes for these adolescents, have hardly been considered, despite obvious financial and ethical implications. In relation to recidivism studies, these have been carried out quite consistently since the mid 1980s, yet, as is discussed, they still suffer from many methodological problems. The authors also note that research into treatment programmes comes almost exclusively from North America. Thus, such research needs replicating with UK samples in order to assure the applicability of any research findings to this population.     

Predicting dropout from a residential programme for adolescent sexual abusers using pre-treatment variables and implications for recidivism

Abstract

This study addresses the prediction that dropout from a UK specialized residential treatment program for adolescent sexual abusers can be determined from pre-treatment variables. Participants were 49 adolescents aged 12–16?years, who had sexually abused children, peers/adults or both. Of the variables examined, 25 showed a significant association with treatment dropout. A scale, consisting of 20 items, was designed to predict treatment dropout. As a measure it showed internal consistency (alpha?=?0.84) and predictive validity. Treatment dropout was linked to a greater risk of recidivism: offences of a general; violent; and combined violent or sexual nature. Missing data confounded the overall small sample size; therefore, a brief checklist of factors associated with dropout was produced as a guide for treatment managers and clinicians.     

AN ETHICS FOR WORKING UP?: Japanese Corporate Scandals and Rethinking Lessons about Fieldwork

ABSTRACT

Almost forty years after Laura Nader's initial rallying call for anthropologists to “study up,” research on power holders and elite individuals and institutions still constitutes only a small fraction of ethnographic work. In addition, many of the methodological and ethical issues specific to studying up remain under-examined. Most discussions of methodological and ethical dilemmas in anthropology to date have assumed a power differential that favors the anthropologist. What happens when the power vector points in the other direction? Through the retelling of dilemmas faced when dealing with a very powerful and prominent field subject, I set the stage for a broader examination of the often taken-for-granted ethical and methodological norms of contemporary anthropological fieldwork. While pulling apart the intertwined narratives of a corporate scandal and a corporate-sponsored women's soccer team, I attend to the ways that studies of those in power often de-center commonly held assumptions within anthropology about the primacy of participant observation, the importance of rapport, the question of for whom we write, and the need to protect subjects’ anonymity. Underscoring the analytical utility of attending to the process of ethnography, rather than just its products, this essay aims to raise some questions about the ethical and intellectual responsibilities of anthropologists, specifically those questions that arise when one studies up.     

International Hague Network of Judges: Significance in Implementation of the 1980 and 1996 Hague Conventions on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction

The 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (“the Convention”) provides for the prompt return to the country of habitual residence of children taken by a parent from one country to another. It was created to address the threshold problem in such cases, that is, which court should determine the rights of the parties involved. In a case under the Convention, the court's concern is which country is the country of habitual residence and practical aspects of the return to ensure the safety of the child and the taking parent. This article will discuss the formation of the International Hague Network of Judges (IHNJ), why it is crucial in the advancement of the Convention's goals, and, specifically, what it does to educate judges and facilitate communication between judges, and how the IHNJ can facilitate the return, including providing information on services, procedures, and protections offered in the countries of return.     

An Assessment of Judges’ Self‐Reported Experiences of Secondary Traumatic Stress

Many judges experience occupation‐specific stress, such as secondary traumatic stress (STS), burnout, compassion fatigue, and vicarious traumatization. A content analysis of 762 judges’ open‐ended responses to a survey asking whether they had suffered from STS revealed that judges moderately experienced most types of stress. Some case types (e.g., family court) and some job aspects (e.g., gruesome evidence) were particularly stressful. Judges reported both positive (e.g., social support) and negative (e.g., distractions) coping mechanisms. Interventions should be tailored to judges’ characteristics, (e.g., gender), job (e.g., family court), beliefs (e.g., that STS does not exist), and level of distress.     

The Accuracy and Applicability of 3D Modeling and Printing Blunt Force Cranial Injuries

The purpose of this study was to determine the factors affecting the accuracy of 3D models and 3D prints of cranial blunt force trauma, to evaluate the applicability and limitations of modeling such injuries. Three types of cranial blunt force lesions were documented (hinge, depressed, and comminuted) using three forms of surface scanning (laser, structured light scanner, and photogrammetry) at two different quality settings (standard and high). 3D printed models of the lesions were produced using two different materials (a gypsum‐like composite powder called VisiJet^® PXL and an acrylic engineered composite plastic called VisiJet^® M3 in crystal colour). The results of these analyzes indicate the prints in this study exhibit some statistically significant differences from the actual bone lesions, but details of the lesions can be reproduced to within 2 mm accuracy.     

Education Counts: Turning Crisis Into Opportunity for Adolescents

This essay, adapted from the keynote address delivered at the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges’ 72nd Annual Conference on July 13, 2009, in Chicago, Illinois, focuses on adolescents and education—a strategy that is not only economically sound but also logical, indeed honorable. So just how do we begin to turn the crisis facing too many children and families into opportunity? How do we interrupt, and reroute, that perilous pipeline to prison? How do we help to build off‐ramps from the disastrous destiny that awaits so many young people? How do we regain our leadership role in constructive juvenile justice instead of juvenile incarceration? I believe judges can take a leadership role in addressing these questions. It's our children's future to be sure, but it's ours too. Indeed, it's the very future of our nation that is at stake.