Effectiveness of Functional Family Therapy for Mandated Versus Non‐Mandated Youth

This study compares the outcomes for youth mandated to participate in Functional Family Therapy (FFT) to those whose participation was referred but voluntary. FFT is a short‐term intervention for delinquents and status offenders, along with their parents. The study sample consists of 120 cases: 70 youth and parents who were mandated by the Family Court to participate in FFT and 50 youth and their parents who were referred to FFT by other agencies. The sample is diverse in terms of gender, race and ethnicity. The outcome variables consist of a set of scales obtained from the Strengths and Needs Assessment (SNA). Changes in life domain functioning, child strengths, acculturation, caregivers' strengths, caregivers' needs, child behavioral emotional needs, and child risk behaviors are assessed. The analysis indicates that both groups improved across all domains. Overall, being mandated to participate in FFT does not predict greater improvements in outcomes. The findings suggest that status offenders and minor delinquents who participated in FFT could be processed less formally without foregoing the therapy outcomes.     

职务犯罪心理研究

职务犯罪是在病态心理支配下所进行的行为。通过对职务犯罪的心理病变进行的病理学研究 ,认为职务犯罪心理系二因致病。在内因方面 ,需要偏离导致职务犯罪者对官职、财富与“美色”的病态追求 ,动机偏离导致职务犯罪行为人对“奋斗目标”产生疯狂的“热情” ;在外因方面 ,社会因素是职务犯罪的媒化剂。职务犯罪的主要病态心理类型包括精神压抑症、胜利恐惧症、骄横跋扈症和奢侈症。并就此提出了职务犯罪的心理疗法     

针刺配合放血治疗慢性头痛48例

目的:观察针刺配合放血治疗慢性头痛的疗效。方法:86例慢性头痛患者,分为针刺配合放血治疗组和西药对照组,观察治疗前后两组的疗效。结果:采用针刺配合放血治疗慢性头痛疗效显著,且与西药治疗组比较,差异有显著性。结论:采用针刺配合放血治疗慢性头痛是较好的治疗途径。     

Exploratory trial of schema-focussed therapy in a forensic personality disordered population

The management of needs and risks in personality disordered offender populations has become a focus for health and criminal justice services in the UK. Recent studies demonstrate the effectiveness of schema focussed therapy (SFT) for patients with borderline personality disorder. This study was an exploratory trial of the feasibility of implementing SFT in a population of patients with personality disorder in a high secure hospital in England. Preliminary evaluations of the effects of SFT were conducted to investigate whether those receiving SFT demonstrated significant improvements on measures of anger, impulsiveness, schemata and interpersonal style. No significant effects were evident although there was a significant increase in defectiveness/shame schema in the SFT group. Lack of effectiveness of SFT is likely due to the preliminary nature of this study. Future trials of SFT need to ensure comprehensive therapist preparation, control of TAU, bigger samples, address attrition and provide more intensive therapy.     

A survey of the provision of family therapy in medium secure units in Wales and England

A cross-sectional survey design was utilised to capture a snapshot of the provision of family therapy in medium secure units (MSUs) across Wales and England during 2013. Semi-structured interviews were administered via telephone interview with 39 MSUs. Information pertaining to the main research question was also gathered from a further 10 via email follow-up. Over a third of responding MSUs in Wales and England were offering family therapy, with team members being appropriately qualified and receiving regular supervision. Systemic psychotherapy was the most prevalent approach to working with families and it is suggested here that systemic psychotherapy fits well with the complexity and uniqueness of working with families in secure contexts.     

对生前预嘱相关问题的探讨

生前预嘱是指人在意识清楚时签署一份文书来事先表达出自己在生命末期的医疗意愿。本文针对生前预嘱的理解和适用中存在的相关问题作出探讨。本文以尊严死在我国的提出以及生前预嘱在我国的推广现状为基础,从法律的视角分析了生前预嘱的合法性和必要要件,并阐明了在目前的法律框架下生前预嘱还不是生效的法律文件,生前预嘱的落实还需要亲属的同意。本文借鉴其他国家和地区对生前预嘱的立法状况并结合我国的实际,提出了对于放弃治疗和尊严死的理解,以及针对医疗实践中放弃治疗的困惑提出了对放弃治疗应该严格遵循的原则。     

Treating high-risk rapists in a New Zealand intensive prison programme

The focus of this article is on the pilot development and implementation of a prison-based intensive treatment programme for high-risk adult-victim rape offenders in New Zealand. Advances in actuarial risk assessment enabled the identification of a group of high-risk adult sex offenders for whom no dedicated treatment programme existed. Based on a review of the treatment literature for rapists, a pilot programme was developed called the Adult Sex Offender Treatment Programme (ASOTP). The programme, based on the risk–need–responsivity and cognitive behavioural therapy principles, also used an adaptation of Young's schema therapy to address personality responsivity issues and specific idiosyncratic schema associated with participant offence pathways identified by the Massachusetts Treatment Centre classification (Version 3 for rapists). Measures of responsivity and dynamic risk administered in the ASOTP indicated some success in addressing treatment needs for the pilot participants (n=10). The programme has subsequently been expanded across prison specialist treatment unit sites and delivered to a further 52 participants. Although intermediate measures continue to indicate change in dynamic risk, recidivism outcome evaluations have not yet been possible, due to low numbers of paroled participants.     

Developing an intervention to overcome procrastination

ABSTRACT

The main goal of this study was the development of a reliable intervention to overcome general procrastination orientated to college students, designed to be used in practical clinical work. The workshops involved six meetings based on behavioral and cognitive techniques, paradox intervention, and psychoeducation. 175 students participated voluntarily. Their procrastination levels were measured in a pretest, post-test, and a 3-month follow-up. After the first interview, the participants were randomly divided into three groups (Intervention A, Intervention B, and a control group with no intervention). There was a significant improvement after the intervention. After 3 months, the average score was still significantly lower than in the pretest, whereas the score of the control group remained unchanged. The participants in Workshop A scored significantly lower in the post-test than the ones in Workshop B. After 3 months, the participants in Workshop B scored significantly lower in the follow up. So both interventions resulted to be effective in reducing procrastination sustainably.     

Effectiveness of a risk–need–responsivity‐based treatment program for violent and sexual offenders: Results of a retrospective,quasi‐experimental study

Purpose

Relapse prevention is an important goal in correctional settings. Although there is strong evidence for the effectiveness of certain treatment programs for juvenile offenders, those for adults lack such evidence. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a risk–need–responsivity (RNR)‐based intervention.

Methods

A quasi‐experimental, observational study design and cox regression analysis were used to compare treated violent and sexual offenders (n = 171) with untreated offenders (n = 241).

Results

Both groups were observed for an average of 7.9 years. Recidivism rates of treated offenders (11.7%, n = 20) were similar to those of control offenders (15.8%, n = 38; p = .25). When controlling for confounding variables, the hazard of recidivism in the treatment group was 5.2% lower than that in the control group. Subdividing the treatment group resulted in lower hazard ratios for offenders still in therapy when released and offenders cancelling therapy. However, none of the group differences was statistically significant.

Conclusion

Our results show that control and RNR‐based treatment groups had comparable recidivism rates with a trend towards a positive treatment effect, especially for people in outpatient treatment. However, criminal history, age at the start of follow‐up, and actuarial risk of recidivism were significantly associated with recidivism. Future research needs to apply elaborate methodological approaches to detect robust treatment effects and consider different criteria of treatment effectiveness. Furthermore, the influence of prison climate, motivational factors, intervention quality, and factors supporting the success of outpatient treatment should be considered in future studies of larger offender samples.     

Sibling Incest: A Model for Group Practice with Adult Female Victims of Brother–Sister Incest

Working with groups of people who have been sexually abused introduces mutual experiential themes into the process that can be beneficial and meaningful. This paper discusses brother–sister incestuous sexual abuse with implications for group work. Literature and research is reviewed concerning sexual abuse, incest, family relationships, and theories that aid in explaining incest. Themes covered include: effects of incest, coping methods, blaming, and family of the victim. Common themes are explored and implications for group work are suggested on the basis of length, detail, structure, content, and pre-group contact.