Understanding why sex


offenders desist


Frequent clubbers most at risk of stranger violence


G


OING CLUBBING three or more times a week triples a person’s experiences of violence from strangers


and acquaintances, says new research from Nottingham Trent University. Going to clubs once or twice weekly, using cannabis and being divorced or separated are the other key factors likely to increase the number of experiences of some kind of violent assault by a stranger or acquaintance. And some risk factors differ: men, for example, experience 170% more incidents of violence from strangers than women. This insight into who experiences most stranger/acquaintance violence results from research why crime rates – including violent crimes – have fallen dramatically in England and Wales over the last two decades. “According to the Crime Survey for England and Wales,” says researcher Professor Andromachi Tseloni, “acquaintance violence fell by 73% from 1995 to 2013 (for 16-24 year olds the fall was 83%) while stranger violence dropped by 43% between 2002/3 and 2013/14. Interestingly the ‘crime drop’ has not touched repeat victims of violence. “Rather, the drop is most clearly seen among 16-24-year-olds and people who in the 1990s might have had just one experience of stranger or acquaintance violence within a year,” she says.


The current fall in young people, particularly men, going to clubs and pubs in the evening could explain some of the trend, suggests further research by Dr Laura Garius. An increase in the numbers of older clubbers and pub-goers may be resulting in a more balanced and less ‘testosterone-fuelled’ night-time’ economy. A gentrification of city centres with more sitting down drinking venues which also offer food or snacks, or night bus schemes, are other possible explanations. But further work is required, say researchers, to answer questions arising from the study such as why separated/divorced people experience more non-domestic violence or why those living in social housing face more violence from acquaintances but not strangers.


Recommendations from the study include a greater focus on licensing policies for clubs and pubs that encourage good practice for violence prevention as well as raising awareness via drug counselling services of the significantly increased risks and frequency of stranger/acquaintance violence faced by drug users. n


i Contact Professor Andromachi Tseloni,


Nottingham Trent University Email andromachi.tseloni@ntu.ac.uk Telephone 0115 8484704 Web www.ntu.ac.uk/research/groups-and- centres/projects/violence-trends ESRC Grant Number ES/L014971/1


WINTER 2018 SOCIETY NOW 7


BETTER UNDERSTANDING of why sex offenders can refrain from offending could lead to more effective rehabilitative programmes and interventions, suggests research. Although re-offending rates amongst sexual offenders are relatively low and most offenders desist at some point in their lives, desistance from sexual offending, unlike recidivism and offending risk factors, has been little researched. In a new study, researchers from Queen’s University Belfast conducted 32 in-depth life-story interviews with convicted child sex offenders who were under the supervision of the probation service in England and Wales. Findings indicate that for those living crime-free lives, work, relationships and, most important, the ability to imagine a plausible, non-offending identity were all key to desistance.


Researcher Professor Anne-Marie McAlinden says the research has important implications for rehabilitation of sex offenders. “Our findings affirm that promoting desistance among those who have committed sexual offending is, to a great extent, about motivation,” she says. Rehabilitative programmes should focus on the future, promoting responsibility for future actions rather than past ones and, in the context of appropriate risk management, on developing supportive relationships and meaningful employment. In rehabilitation, participants should be encouraged to imagine what their future crime-free lives will look like and to make positive and meaningful (to them) plans for the future. n


i


Contact Professor Anne-Marie McAlinden, Queen’s University Belfast Email a.mcalinden@qub.ac.uk Telephone 028 9097 3869 ESRC Grant Number ES/K006061/1


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