New Nomenclature for Sexually Abusive Youth: Naming and Assessing Sexually Violent and Predatory Offenders

New nomenclature is presented identifying two subsets of sexually abusive youths currently not defined in the literature or in existing models or risk assessment tools: sexually violent youth (YSV) and predatory sexually violent youth (YPSV). Distinctively and qualitatively different, these youths are more dangerous, manifest higher levels of coercion (e.g., threats of bodily injury, use of weapons), or are predatory sexually violent toward strangers or casual acquaintances. Discussed is the innovative, empirically guided risk assessment tool Multiplex Empirically Guided Inventory of Ecological Aggregates for Assessing Sexually Abusive Children and Adolescents (Ages 19 and Under) (MEGA) (Miccio-Fonseca, 2006a Miccio-Fonseca, L. C. August 2006a. Multiplex Empirically Guided Inventory of Ecological Aggregates for Assessing Sexually Abusive Children and Adolescents (Ages 19 and Under)—MEGA, August, San Diego, CA: Author.  [Google Scholar]) for assessing the level of risk for all youths (male and female) under the age of 19 years, including YSVs and YPSVs.     

Treatment Effect on Recidivism for Juveniles Who Have Sexually Offended: a Multilevel Meta-Analysis

The current study investigated the effect on recidivism of treatment aimed at juveniles who have sexually offended. It also assessed the potential moderating effect of type of recidivism, and several treatment, participant and study characteristics. In total, 14 published and unpublished primary studies, making use of a comparison group and reporting on official recidivism rates, were included in a multilevel meta-analysis. This resulted in the use of 77 effect sizes, and 1726 participants. A three-level meta-analytic model was used to calculate the combined effect sizes (Cohens d) and to perform moderator analyses. Study quality was assessed with the EPHPP Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies. A moderate effect size was found (d = 0.37), indicating that the treatment groups achieved an estimated relative reduction in recidivism of 20.5% as compared to comparison groups. However, after controlling for publication bias, a significant treatment effect was no longer found. Type of recidivism did not moderate the effect of treatment, indicating that treatment groups were equally effective for all types of recidivism. Also, no moderating effects of participant or treatment characteristics were found. Regarding study characteristics, a shorter follow up time showed a trend for larger effect sizes, and the effect size calculation based on proportions yielded larger effect sizes than calculation via mean frequency of offending. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed.     

Suicidal Behavior: Toward an Explanation of Differences in Female and Male Rates

ABSTRACT: The explanation of sex differences is based on Breed's five “components of a basic suicide syndrome” which appears to be a satisfactory model for explaining male suicide. Thus far it has not been used to explain female suicidal behavior and sex differences in attempts. It appears that if sex differences are noted the model is adequate. This is because the same factors affect the sexes differently; the content and structure of the roles are different. Failure for males is obvious, but the female role is diffuse and lacking in standards for both success and failure. Female commitment to role and cultural goals is not less, just different and diffuse. Rigidity of roles varies but male goals are usually more specific. Shame, when men do blame themselves, is in the context of a narrow role. Contrary to popular belief, isolation of men is probably greater than that of women.     

Jurors' Views on the Value and Objectivity of Mental Health Experts Testifying in Sexually Violent Predator Trials

Although psychologists and psychiatrists often testify in court, we know relatively little about the extent to which jurors value the testimony they hear from these experts. We surveyed 161 jurors who rendered opinions in 14 sex offender civil commitment trials after hearing testimony from psychologists and psychiatrists serving as expert witnesses. Most jurors reported that the experts they heard testify were honest, and they tended to attribute disagreements among experts to case complexity, as opposed to adversarial allegiance or bias. Most reported that hearing from the experts helped them make better decisions and that experts using risk assessment instruments could make more accurate predictions than those who did not. Jurors were, however, more skeptical about the ability of experts to accurately predict recidivism when they heard testimony from both prosecution and defense experts. Findings suggest that jurors value risk assessment testimony from experts, but that experts must think carefully about how to best make risk assessment instrument results accessible to jurors. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rates and correlates of undetermined deaths among African Americans: results from the National Violent Death Reporting System

Little is known about the factors associated with undetermined death classifications among African Americans. In this study, the rates of undetermined deaths were assessed, the prevalence of missing information was estimated, and whether the circumstances preceding death differ by race were examined. Data were derived from the 2005-2008 National Violent Death Reporting System. African Americans had higher prevalence of missing information than Whites. African Americans classified as undetermined deaths were more likely to be older, women, never married/single, to have had a blood alcohol content at or above the legal limit, and to have had a substance abuse problem. The results suggest that racial differences in the preponderance and the type of evidence surrounding the death may affect death classification.     

Offending Patterns of Serial Sex Offenders: Escalation,De‐escalation,and Consistency of Sexually Intrusive and Violent Behaviours

A series of stranger sexual assaults poses considerable obstacles for law enforcement officials. One such preoccupation is concerned with whether or not the offender will escalate in the severity of his behaviours with subsequent victims. The current study uses transition matrices to address whether or not the offending patterns of 72 serial stranger sex offenders change from one victim to the next as it pertains to their sexual acts and level of physical force used during the crime. Findings indicate that stability, specifically the offender's intrusive sexual acts and use of physical force, and versatility are present in this sample's offending patterns. To explain changes in offending patterns between victims, multinomial regression analyses indicate that situational factors and modus operandi strategies are important considerations. Implications for investigations are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An Exploration of Factors Reducing Recidivism Rates of Formerly Incarcerated Youth with Disabilities Participating in a Re-Entry Intervention

Juvenile offenders are costly to our society in terms of the monetary and social expenditures from the legal system, victims’ person costs, and incarceration. The re-entry and community reintegration outcomes for formerly incarcerated youth with a disabling condition are bleak compared to peers without disabilities. In this study, we examined the factors––both static and intervention-related––that reduce recidivism rates for project participants possessing a mental health and/or special education diagnosis and were served by a facility-to-community re-entry intervention. Our sample was comprised of a total of 320 youth formerly incarcerated who received project services between August of 1999 through June of 2004. Project services include a transition specialist whose role is service coordination to youth from the facility to the community. Kaplan–Meier survival functions were calculated for participants on the outcome measure of the rates of recidivism. Additionally, Cox regression modeling was used to identify factors for the prediction of time to recidivate. Our findings indicate that the intervention may contribute to reduced recidivism rates but that a set of static demographic and pre-incarceration risks contribute more to the prediction of recidivism than community adjustment factors (e.g., employment or enrollment). With these findings, the intervention seems promising yet it remains unclear about which programmatic features contribute to reduced recidivism rates. Implications for research and practice are shared.     

Risk Perception: Using Conditional Versus General Base Rates for Risk Communication1

In general, people judge their chance of experiencing a health risk as being less than the general base rate because of their favorable status on risk factors (e.g., history of stroke). Presenting base rates for high and low risk groups (conditional base rates) were hypothesized to lessen people's tendency to adjust downward from the base rate because risk factors are included in conditional base rates (CBRs). Young (M= 19 years) and older women (M= 46 years) were presented with either a general base rate (GBR) or CBRs for high‐ and low‐risk groups for 5 health risks. The CBR groups were significantly less likely to adjust their probability judgments from the base rate for the risk group that they believed applied to them (e.g., smoker vs. nonsmoker). The CBR effect was replicated in a second experiment in which women (M = 19 years) were informed of either a GBR, a CBR for a high‐risk group, or a CBR for a low‐risk group. The findings suggest that people might estimate subjective probabilities by considering both the base rate for a health risk and self‐assessments on risk factors. Biases about one's status on risk factors, however, may limit people's identification with relevant risk groups and warrant further investigation.     

Toward A Typology Of Abusive Women: Differences Between Partner-Only And Generally Violent Women In The Use Of Violence

Based on previous typologies of domestically violent men ( Holtzworth-Munroe & Stuart, 1994 ), women who were referred to a treatment agency for abusive behavior  ( N = 52)  were categorized into two groups based on the breadth of their use of violence: Partner-Only (PO) and Generally Violent (GV). PO women were hypothesized to use reactive violence, for example, out of fear or in self-defense, whereas GV women were hypothesized to use instrumental violence, that is, in order to exert control. Self-defense was assessed in three different ways and convergent validity was demonstrated for these three new measures. GV women reported using instrumental violence more than PO women, in a variety of situations. GV women tended to report more traumatic symptoms than PO women, although they did not experience significantly more abuse. GV women were more likely to witness their mothers' physical aggression. Thus, we theorize that GV women have been socialized to believe that it is acceptable for women to use violence to resolve conflict. Trauma history and violent socialization should be addressed clinically.     

Personality Assessment Inventory Scores as Predictors of Evaluation Referrals,Evaluator Opinions,and Commitment Decisions in Sexually Violent Predator Cases

We used data from more than 1,500 offenders to examine the association between Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; Morey, 1991 Morey, L. C. (1991). Personality Assessment Inventory: Professional manual. Odessa, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources. [Google Scholar]) scores and progress through the sexually violent predator (SVP) screening, evaluation, and commitment process. There was no clear association between PAI scores and referrals for full evaluations, but PAI scores were small to moderate predictors of evaluator opinions and diagnoses among offenders who underwent full evaluations. Higher Antisocial Features (ANT) scores were associated with diagnoses of antisocial personality disorder, but this association was moderated by offender response style. ANT scores were more strongly associated with antisocial personality disorder diagnoses among those responding defensively (d = .71) than among those responding openly (d = .48). The mean ANT score among defensive responders diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder was about 55T, suggesting that even moderate ANT scale elevations could indicate a clinically significant level of antisocial traits among some offenders.     

Violent Delinquency: An Examination of Psychopathic Typologies

This study sought to determine the combined effects of psychopathy, low intellectual functioning, and love deprivation on violent delinquency. Low-intellectual-functioning psychopaths were significantly more violent than were low or high-intellectual-functioning nonpsychopaths or high-intellectual-functioning psychopaths. Love deprivation was more strongly related to violence than was psychopathy/intellectual functioning, and severely love-deprived, low-intellectual-functioning psychopaths were the most violent.     

Violent delinquency: an examination of psychopathic typologies

This study sought to determine the combined effects of psychopathy, low intellectual functioning, and love deprivation on violent delinquency. Low-intellectual-functioning psychopaths were significantly more violent than were low or high-intellectual-functioning nonpsychopaths or high-intellectual-functioning psychopaths. Love deprivation was more strongly related to violence than was psychopathy/intellectual functioning, and severely love-deprived, low-intellectual-functioning psychopaths were the most violent.     

Base Rates,Deception Detection,and Deception Theory: A Reply to Burgoon (2015)

This essay continues a debate about the relative scientific merits of the Park‐Levine Model (PLM) and Interpersonal Deception Theory (IDT) with regard to accuracy in deception detection. Key points of disagreement include (a) the degree to which message recipients are sensitive to sender veracity and (b) the extent to which interactivity moderates the veracity and base‐rate effects specified by PLM. According to PLM, people are truth‐biased, truth‐bias makes people insensitive to deception, and as a consequence, base rates affect accuracy regardless of interactivity. IDT, in direct contrast, holds that people are sensitive to the veracity of other's communication and that interactivity is a key moderator. Consistent with PLM, data repeatedly show that people are insensitive to other's veracity and that this insensitivity is general across media affordances including interactivity. This rejoinder uses Burgoon's (2015) own interactive data to demonstrate the empirical superiority of PLM over IDT.     

Lies,Damn Lies,and Expectations: How Base Rates Inform Lie–Truth Judgments

We are biased towards thinking that people are telling the truth. Our study represents the first test of how beliefs about the base rate of truths and lies affect this truth bias. Raters were told either 20, 50 or 80% of the speakers would be telling the truth. As the speaker delivered their statement, participants indicated moment by moment whether they thought the speaker was lying or being truthful. At the end of the statement, they made a final lie–truth judgment and indicated their confidence. While viewing the statement, base rate beliefs had an early influence, but as time progressed, all conditions showed a truth bias. In the final judgment at the end of the statement, raters were truth biased when expecting mostly truths but did not show a lie bias when expecting mostly lies. We conclude base rate beliefs have an early influence, but over time, a truth bias dominates. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Violentization: A Relatively Singular Theory of Violent Crime

Violentization offers a unique explanation of violent crime for four reasons: (1) the theory explains the formation of violent criminal acts, the development of violent criminals, as well as the transformation and maintenance of the communities in which they evolve and later commit their crimes; (2) the theory identifies the stages through which violent encounters, socialization, and communal organization/disorganization unfold; (3) the theory treats violent criminals as active agents in their violent criminal acts; and (4) it is constructed from an insider’s viewpoint because the researcher has undergone similar experiences as the people whose actions his theory explains.     

Friendships Lost: The Social Consequences of Violent Victimization

Few studies have examined the impact of violent victimization on friendship networks. This study used 2 waves of data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) to examine the effects of violent victimization on number of peer- and self-reported friendships. Guided by stigma theory (Goffman, 1963), fixed-effect regression models controlling for depression, delinquency, substance use, and school engagement were completed to predict changes in number of friends following victimization. Consistent with the theory, results indicate that experiencing violent victimization (e.g., jumped, stabbed, shot at) was associated with a decrease in number of friends. These effects were magnified for females and for individuals with a greater number of depressive symptoms. These results were consistent even when models were run separately for each individual type of victimization. Treatment and prevention implications are discussed.     

Evaluating Violent Conduct in Sport: A Hierarchy of Vice

The landscape of sport shows conspicuous discursive and material disparities between the responses to openly violent on-field transgressors and the responses to other kinds of transgressor, most notably drug users. The former gets off significantly lighter in terms of ideological framing and formal punishment. The latter—and drug users in particular—are typically demonised and heavily punished, whilst the former are regularly lionised, dramatised, celebrated and punished less severely. The preceding disparities cannot be upheld from the standpoint of morality in general or from that of a Broad Internalist sport ethic. Consideration of the consequences, actions, motives and vices involved in the respective categories fails to support them. Nor is support provided by the notion that sports are tests of the physical skills and virtues that the obstacles presented are designed to foster and promote, and behaviour that threatens the opportunity to exercise those excellences or have competitions determined by them should be the subject of critical moral scrutiny. Openly violent on-field transgression does not fare at all well by the yardstick of Broad Internalism. Robust investigation of and ultimate change in the values underpinning the disparities is warranted.