NCJ Number
170961
Journal
Journal of Sexual Aggression Volume: 2 Issue: 2 Dated: (1996) Pages: 112-121
Date Published
1996
Length
10 pages
Annotation
A pilot program for family liaison work in connection with the treatment of adolescent sex offenders ages 16-21 in England is discussed in terms of the treatment issues involved and the impacts of the program.
Abstract
The Family Liaison Program is linked to the British Prison Service's national Sex Offender Treatment Program (SOTP). The liaison program was designed to promote family awareness of SOTP, encourage offender participation and family support during SOTP, prepare families for offender disclosure, challenge distortions that sustain offenses, target changes in family belief and value systems, encourage victim empathy, develop a relapse prevention plan, and facilitate aftercare. Data from the families of eight offenders in the program revealed that family motivation was far greater than expected and was more marked than was their insight into their son's offending. The seven families that attended sessions were in a status of denial and rationalization, but each spoke openly and candidly about aspects of their son's offending behavior. The family liaison sessions have also emphasized the negative consequences of the offending for the families themselves; the impact was analogous to that of bereavement. Tables and 21 references