Journal article
SPECIAL THEME: SEX OFFENDERS: SCIENTIFIC, LEGAL, AND POLICY PERSPECTIVE: THE SCIENCE OF SEX OFFENDERS: RISK ASSESSMENT, TREATMENT, AND PREVENTION: SEXUAL OFFENDING: Linking Assessment, Intervention, and Decision Making
Psychology, Public Policy and Law, Vol.4, pp.138-1253
01 Mar 1998
Abstract
I. Introduction One of the important issues raised by Kansas v. Hendricks (1997) is public safety. More specifically, by what means is the public to be protected from the future offending of convicted sexual offenders who reach the end of their sentences? In Hendricks , the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of "civil commitment" for end-of-sentence sexual offenders who appear to present an ongoing risk for sexual reoffending, upholding the provisions of the statute from constitutional challenges under substantive due process, double jeopardy, and the prohibition against ex post facto legislation. Beyond the constitutional question, however, Hendricks highlights important questions for the behavioral sciences and their clinical applications. What are the best approaches (i.e., empirically supported, legally relevant) to assessing risk in sexual offenders? To what extent are treatment interventions effective in reducing risk? In cases like Hendricks , it is important to frame this evidence within these parameters. We address several of these issues in the present article. We begin by reviewing the existing empirical evidence on sex offender recidivism and the related evidence on the effectiveness of specialized treatment interventions on reducing recidivism risk. We then discuss the importance of legal decision-making context on the usefulness of prediction versus management models of risk assessment and consider the applicability of each model to the Hendricks context. Finally, we describe a clinical decision-making model that has particular relevance for decisions about sex-offending risk -- in Hendricks and other contexts -- and that facilitates the linkage of ...
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- Title
- SPECIAL THEME: SEX OFFENDERS: SCIENTIFIC, LEGAL, AND POLICY PERSPECTIVE: THE SCIENCE OF SEX OFFENDERS: RISK ASSESSMENT, TREATMENT, AND PREVENTION: SEXUAL OFFENDING: Linking Assessment, Intervention, and Decision Making
- Creators
- Kirk HeilbrunAllegheny University of the Health SciencesVillanova UniversityMichelle KeeneyChristine Maguth NezuSusie ChungAdam L. Wasserman
- Publication Details
- Psychology, Public Policy and Law, Vol.4, pp.138-1253
- Publisher
- American Psychological Association, Inc
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Psychology
- Identifiers
- 991019203442704721