NCJ Number
173321
Journal
Criminal Behaviour and Mental Health Volume: 7 Issue: 1 Dated: 1997 Pages: 69-84
Date Published
1997
Length
16 pages
Annotation
In 1993 the West Midlands Probation Service established a sex offender unit (SOU), the largest in England, with the aim of providing a specialist treatment service for sex offenders serving a community-based sentence; this article describes the treatment program and discusses some of the issue that have arisen during the design and implementation of the program.
Abstract
Although cognitive-behavioral group work is widely believed to be the most effective intervention for men who sexually abuse children, some believe that there are groups of sex offenders who may not derive maximum benefit from the standard program; for these offenders it might be necessary to modify existing practice by providing alternative or complementary interventions. The SOU has attempted to address some of the problems identified by adapting the existing program for clients with learning disabilities and for men who sexually abuse adult women. In addition, a victim-to-offender group operates simultaneously with the treatment group and is offered to clients who were themselves child victims of sexual abuse. As yet, the long-term effectiveness of tailoring treatment to offender characteristics is not known, but client and staff feedback have been positive. Treatment providers elsewhere may not have the resources to operate different groups for different categories of offenders; however, sex offenders are not a homogeneous group, and greater program flexibility may be needed to provide effective treatment for clients and adequate protection for the public. 1 table and 50 references