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Assessing Risk: Gender responsive considerations
Samantha Crawford & Sarah PassmoreHigher Assistant Psychologists
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• Statistics
• Female pathways into offending
• Issues women encounter in prison
• Risk Assessments
• Ways Forward
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Women in prison 3,814 (4.82%) June 2013
www.justice.gov.uk/statistics
Age group
Women Men
25-29 796 14,695
30-39 1,266 21,474
40-49 830 13,815
Sentence Length
Women: 12 months – less than 4 years 1,189
Men: 4 years or more (excluding indeterminate)
23,406
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www.justice.gov.uk/statistics
Offence Type Men Male % Change from 2007
Women Women % Change from 2007
Violence against the person
Drug Offences
Theft & Handling Stolen Goods
Sexual Offences
28.5%
14.5%
5.5%
14.3%
+1.3%
-0.9%
+0.1%
+2.9%
26.7%
21.2%
13.2%
2.4%
+6.2%
-10%
+2%
+1%
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“The most common pathways to crime are based on survival (of abuse and poverty) and substance abuse” (Bloom, Owen &
Covington, 2003)
• Women as victims as well as offenders
• Relationships
• Mental illness
• Substance abuse
• Little education/work experience
• Homelessness/AccommodationLoucks, 2004; Corston, 2007; A Distinct Approach: A Guide
to Working with Women Offenders – NOMS 2012
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Self HarmSeparation from
children
Location of prison from home area
Effects of separation on the children
Pregnancy/birth in prison Hormonal
difficulties
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What are risk assessments?
“The assessment of risk for future sexual/violent behaviour in
patients/offenders with a violent history and/or mental disorder”
(De Vogel, 2012)
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Why have more gender specific risk
assessments?
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HCR-20Assessing Risk for Violence (Webster, Douglas,
Eaves & Hart, 1997)Historical
(Past)Clinical (Present)
Risk Management (Future)
H1. Previous ViolenceH2. Young Age at First Violent Incident H3. Relationship InstabilityH4. Employment ProblemsH5. Substance Use ProblemsH6. Major Mental IllnessH7. PsychopathyH8. Early MaladjustmentH9. Personality DisorderH10. Prior Supervision Failure
C1. Lack of Insight
C2. Negative Attitudes
C3. Active Symptoms of Major Mental Illness
C4. Impulsivity
C5. Unresponsive to Treatment
R1. Plans Lack Feasibility
R2. Exposure to Destabilizers
R3. Lack of Personal Support
R4. Noncompliance with Remediation Attempts
R5. Stress
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• The Female Additional Manual (FAM) is a recently developed addition to the HCR-20 for assessing risk for violence in women. (De Vogel, de Vries Robbe, van Kalmthout & Place, 2011)
• Several risk factors for violent behaviour in women differ substantially from those in men.
• The increased number of violent crimes being committing by women and the different pathways into crime is highlighting the need for gender specific risk assessments.
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ProfileMiss A: 26 year old femaleIndex offence: MurderPrevious offences: theft, assaulting a constable
Background InformationParents separated age 7Neglect and physical and sexual abuse as a childWitnessed domestic violenceBehavioural difficulties at schoolTaken in to care age 12Substance misusePregnancy at young agePostnatal depressionProstitution
Prison BehaviourSelf harmLow self esteemManipulationBorderline personality disorder
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• H6 Major Mental Illness
• H7 Psychopathy
• H8 Early Maladjustment
• H8a Problematic Circumstances during childhood
• H8b Problematic behaviour during childhood
• H9 Personality Disorder – cluster B PDs
• H10 Prior supervision failure
• H11 Prostitution
• H12 Parenting difficulties
• H13 Pregnancy at young age
• H14 Suicidality/Self harm
• H15 Victimization after childhood
De Vogel, de Vries Robbe, van Kalmthout & Place, 2011
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Clinical Items
• Covert/Manipulative behaviour
• Low self esteem
Risk Management Items
• Problematic child care responsibility
• Problematic intimate relationship
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Neglect and physical and sexual abuse as
a child
Pregnancy at young age
Postnatal depression
Prostitution Manipulation
Self harm
Borderline personality disorder
Index offence: Murder
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The increased number of violent offences
committed by women have highlighting the
need for gender sensitive risk assessment.
The pathways into offending seem to differ
from those of males including substance
misuse, abuse and mental health problems,
prostitution and there are more likely to be missed in
traditional risk assessments.
FAM development are a step forward in adopting a more gender sensitive approach
to assessment and risk and an important factor when assessing risk on female
offenders.
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