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Interventions to improve empathy awareness in sexual and violent offenders : conceptual, empirical, and clinical issues

journal contribution
posted on 2010-05-01, 00:00 authored by Andrew Day, Sharon Casey, A Gerace
Interventions that seek to increase empathy are a common feature of programs offered to sexual and violent offenders. Yet, there is little empirical evidence to suggest that they contribute positively to program outcomes. This paper explores the rationale for the delivery of empathy training with violent offenders, describes some of the most commonly used approaches, and reviews the current evidence base relating to effectiveness. It is concluded that while there are strong theoretical grounds for identifying empathy deficits as an important area of criminogenic need, there are considerable difficulties in establishing the extent to which the interventions offered in this area might be considered to be successful in reducing risk.

History

Journal

Aggression and violent behavior

Volume

15

Issue

3

Season

May/June

Pagination

201 - 208

Publisher

Elsevier Science

Location

New York, N.Y.

ISSN

1359-1789

eISSN

1873-6335

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2010, Elsevier Ltd.