NCJ Number
164440
Journal
Journal of Family Violence Volume: 11 Issue: 3 Dated: (September 1996) Pages: 237-249
Date Published
1996
Length
13 pages
Annotation
Brief case histories involving incest were presented to police officers, child welfare workers, and community mental health practitioners in a rural area in Manitoba, Canada to compare their professional attitudes regarding the treatment and punishment of incest.
Abstract
Their attitudes were assessed on three factors: the perpetrator as mentally ill rather than criminal, their attitude regarding treatment of the victims and the mothers, and support for court-mandated treatment. Responses came from 80 police officers, 35 child welfare workers, and 21 community mental health practitioners. Results revealed that police and community mental health practitioners had significantly different attitudes regarding whether perpetrators of child sexual abuse should be regarded more as criminals or more as mentally disturbed. Both mental health and child welfare personnel differed significantly police in that they had a less punitive attitude toward victims and their mothers. All three professional groups were similar in their modest endorsement of the use of court-mandated treatment. The professional's gender did not influence the response to the case vignettes. Tables, appended instrument, and 7 references (Author abstract modified)