NCJ Number
195194
Journal
International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology Volume: 46 Issue: 2 Dated: April 2002 Pages: 183-205
Date Published
2002
Length
24 pages
Annotation
This article explores the role of the functional nature of an offender’s morality in shaping the offender’s criminal behavior and also in determining effective rehabilitative tools.
Abstract
The author studied the role of the functional theory of cognition in developing an understanding of criminal behavior and also investigated whether offender thought processes can be described as modular. The study’s data was collected from offenders as well as non-offenders. The author provides an overview of functional cognition and moral judgment. Modular judgments are defined as judgments that can be changed by an individual based upon the social role undertaken by the individual at the time the judgment is made. Prisoners both in protective and regular custody were found to express modular functional moral judgments. The author asserts that this type of understanding of prisoners thought process may impact social views of prisoners and the social priorities represented in the corrections function. Tables, 3 figures, 41 references