by craigharper | Jun 2, 2014 | Forensic
An international group of researchers, led by FCRG member, Dr Hannah Merdian, have recently published research findings relating to the cognitive distortions of child sex offenders.
The abstract for the paper, published in Psychology, Crime & Law, reads:
This study examined the endorsement of cognitive distortions in child pornography offenders (CPOs), using an established assessment tool, the Abel and Becker Cognition Scale. The scale was expanded to include cognitions specific to child pornography offending, extracted from Howitt and Sheldon’s Children and Sexual Activities Inventory (C&SA). Three samples of CPOs, child sex offenders and offenders with both offence types responded to the cognition items. An exploratory Principal Component Analysis suggested six main components of the scale. CPOs were significantly less likely to endorse these statements in general, and this was more pronounced on items that project blame onto the child or other people, describe a need for power and consider children as sexually active. The statements extracted from C&SA did not differentiate between the groups. These findings are discussed under consideration of the relationship between cognitive distortions and contact sex offending, and in reference to the general criticism concerning the definition and appropriate measurement of cognitive distortions
You can access the full paper here:
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1068316X.2014.902454#.U4z3BPldWT8.
Alternatively, please contact Dr Merdian (hmerdian@lincoln.ac.uk) directly.
by craigharper | Jun 2, 2014 | Forensic
FCRG PhD Student, Craig Harper, recently presented work from his MSc thesis, supervised and subsequently co-authored with group lead, Professor Todd Hogue, at the annual conference of the British Psychological Society. The work that was presented examined the representations of sexual offending within the national British press between August-November 2012, with a full-length paper currently being under review for publication.
For more information about this talk, please contact Craig Harper (charper@lincoln.ac.uk).
by craigharper | Nov 19, 2013 | Forensic
Dr Hannah Merdian was recently invited to present her work on ‘Typologies of Internet Sex Offenders’ at the New Directions in Sex Offender Practice conference hosted by Professor Leam Craig at the University of Birmingham.
This talk drew on Dr Merdian’s previous research and included a detailed analysis of some of the work she has been doing into her ‘three dimensions’ model of child sexual exploitation use.
For more information on this work, please contact Dr Merdian directly.
by craigharper | Oct 8, 2013 | Forensic
FCRG past and present have recently presented their research at two international conferences.
Danielle Kettleborough (past MSc and future PhD student) presented along with past MSc students, Rebecca Crookes and Charlotte Hassett at the National Organisation for the Treatment of Abusers (NOTA) conference in Cardiff (25-27 September 2013). All three were presenting findings from their MSc theses. Their slides can be accessed here:
D Kettleborough NOTA presentation / B Crookes NOTA presentation / C Hassett NOTA presentation
Additionally, Craig Harper (first year PhD student) presented a poster on findings from his MSc research at the “What is Justice?” international conference organised by the Howard League for Penal Reform and Keble College, Oxford University (1-2 October 2013). His poster can be found here:
C Harper HL poster
Congratulations to all four students!!
by craigharper | Sep 23, 2013 | Forensic
Dr Hannah Merdian has been invited to give a keynote presentation and workshop at an upcoming conference. She will be presenting her model of the assessment and classification of offenders who use child sexual exploitation material (CSEM) and her workshop will address some of the more practical elements of the model. The event, hosted by the North West Branch of the National Organisation for the Treatment of Abusers (NOTA) on 21st November 2013, will be held at the Red Bank Community Home in St Helens, Merseyside.
More on Dr Median’s research can be found here.
For more information about the NOTA conference, or to book your place, please click here.
by craigharper | Sep 9, 2013 | Forensic
Given the recent high-profile allegations of historic sexual abuse by celebrities from years-gone-by, it is important to look at the language used to describe these potential offenders within public discourse. Is it right that anybody who abuses a child can be automatically labelled a ‘paedophile’? Are the tabloid press right to use such emotive terms? In this blog post, Craig Harper considers some of the evidence about what paedophilia is, and suggests that, as a society, we need to exercise caution in labelling people in potentially incorrect and damaging ways.
Click here to read this blog post.
by craigharper | Sep 9, 2013 | Forensic
Can prisons ever be a place of rehabilitation, or should they be there to dish out just deserts? In this post, Craig Harper looks at the various purposes of prison and argues that we should view them as places of incapacitation in their current form. Over time, there should be a movement to produce prisons that can truly be places of rehabilitation, but political support for this will be required.
Click here to view this blog post.
by craigharper | Sep 9, 2013 | Forensic
How is it that some people become attracted to religious fundamentalism or political extremism? Is there a difference in the mindsets of those who engage in religion-derived suicide bombings and nationalist campaigns against ‘non-natives’? In this blog post, Craig Harper starts to set out how some people may be drawn into extremism.
Click here to read this post in full.
FCRG member Lorraine Bowman-Grieve researches various forms of extremism. Check out her page and research for more details.
by craigharper | Sep 9, 2013 | Forensic
Is the death penalty ever justified? Does it act as an effective deterrent, or is it the essence of an overly-retributive criminal justice system? Here, Craig Harper tries to unpack some of the issues surrounding the death penalty debate, and puts forward the argument that support for the reintroduction may be deep-rooted within the individual psyche of the ‘common man’.
Click here to read this post.
by craigharper | Sep 9, 2013 | Forensic
What are the key drivers of mental illness? Is mental distress a medical problem, treatable by medication by a prescribing doctor? Is it a normal reaction to troubling economic times? Should we try to treat people, or the society within which they live? Craig Harper tries to unpack some of these issues, arguing that the social darwinist environment that has been bought about by neoliberal capitalism contributes to the development and maintenance of mental ill health. He also argues that Western governments can, and should, do more to address this issue.
Click here to read this blog post.
