Violent Offenders module 3

What is the strongest predictor for homicide victims? 

Behavioral risk factors

What is the most significant predictor of homicide offenders?

Socioeconomic/demographic factors

What was the Pittsburgh Youth Study self-report questionnaire based on?

A prospective longitudinal survey of the development of offending and antisocial behavior

In the Pittsburgh Youth Study, how many samples were used to study the development of offending and antisocial behavior among 500 Pittsburgh boys? 

3 samples

How many Pittsburgh boys were studied in the Pittsburgh Youth Study? 

About 500 totaling up to 1,517 boys

What was the first prospective longitudinal study of the characteristics of homicide offenders and victims? 

The Pittsburgh Youth Study

What is the second most important cause of death for persons aged 15-24 in the United States? 

Homicide

In explanatory risk scores, what are the 3 most significant variables that predicted homicide offending in the logistic regression analysis? 

Old for grade, bad neighborhood, and young mother

In explanatory risk scores, what are the 4 most significant variables that predicted homicide victims in the logistic regression analysis? 

Low guilt, low school achievement, behavior problems of the father, and old for the grade

Which 4 explanatory risk factors predicted BOTH homicide offenders and victims? 

Old for the grade, low guilt, family on welfare, and a broken family

In behavioral risk scores, what are the 5 most significant variables that predicted homicide offenders in the logistic regression analysis? 

Disruptive behavior disorder, favorable attitude to delinquency, high risk score, suspended from school, and favorable attitude to substance abuse

In behavioral risk scores, what are the 3 most significant variables that predicted homicide victims in the logistic regression analysis? 

Serious delinquency, bad relation with parents, and truancy

Which 7 behavioral risk factors predicted BOTH homicide offenders and victims? 

High risk score, truancy, serious delinquency, covert behavior, suspended from school, cruel to people, and peer delinquency

Factors significantly predicted homicide offenders:

High risk score, suspended from school, disruptive behavior disorder, favorable attitude to substance use, peer delinquency, truancy, covert behavior, and cruelty to people

What are the most important risk factors associated with race and predicted homicide offenders?  

African American males were more likely than caucasian males to be homicide offenders and victims. Being around guns, gangs, and drugs, which increases the risk of being involved in homicide in some way.

What are the early risk factors that may cause an antisocial lifestyle?

Guns, gangs, and drugs

Out of behavioral and explanatory predictors, which is more accurate?

Behavioral

What is serious delinquency based on?

Behavioral risk factors

What are the types of research methods used to gather data and which one was used in the Pittsburg Study?

A prospective longitudinal survey using a self-report questionnaire

What is the most significant predictors or factors in homicide offenders?

Socioeconomic/demographic factors

What is the strongest explanatory factor for homicide offenders?  

Old for grade, bad neighborhood, and young mother

What is the strongest risk factor or behavioral factors that predicts a person becoming a homicide victim?

Serious delinquency

How does low school achievement relate to becoming a homicide victim?

Low school achievement is one of the 4 key explanatory predictors for becoming a homicide victim

What is the strongest explanatory factor concerning homicide offenders? 

Socioeconomic/demographic factors

What weapon is used in most homicides?  

Guns

What double standard exists today in relation to women? How does it impact incarceration and treatment?

Reluctance to incarcerate women, but an eagerness to commit them for treatment. Male offenders are seen as more violent.

Why do victims of female perpetrators suffer more psychological symptoms than when they are victimized by male perpetrators?

Portraying male sexual offenders as violent predators, but simultaneously failing to recognize the ability of a woman to offend in the same way sends an unfortunate message to survivors of abuse

What does the media focus on in relation to female sexual offenders?

The media usually focuses on teacher/lover cases. Society labels female sex offender cases as not a big deal.

What are the characteristics of a teacher/lover female offender? Who typically accompanies sexual offenders when they commit their crimes? Are they male or female?

A large majority of female offenders are survivors of abuse. They are usually accompanied by male co-offenders.

What does clinical experience indicate about teacher/lovers?

That they are less likely than other subtypes to have been victimized sexually as children. However, research does indicate that they experience verbal or emotional abuse in childhood, or have an absent father.

How does the amount of unreported crime differ between male and female perpetrators?

There are obstacles that stand in the way of a man disclosing rape or sexual assault by a woman are substantial.

Why might male victims of female sexual abuse be reluctant to report the crime?

They are met with disbelief by trusted friends, suspicion by police officers, or simply experience a personal unwillingness or inability to recognize the act as abuse.

What is the definition of paternalism?

Societal response to female sexual offending: The first perspective can be understood by the “chivalry hypothesis” or paternalism. This is generally attributed to the belief that women are dependent and childlike and need to be protected

What do victims of female perpetrators consistently describe as more severe than victims of male perpetrators?

Psychological and behavioral symptoms are more severe

Female sexual offender typologies:

Offender characteristics, offense characteristics, and victim type

Female sexual offender typology: Offender characteristics

Age, history of childhood abuse, substance abuse, presence of a co-offender

Female sexual offender typology: Offense characteristics

Location of offense, motivation, recidivism, general criminal history

Female sexual offender typology: victim type

Age, gender, and relationship

Teacher/lover sexual encounters are usually not premeditated, but what might happen later?

They can become calculated or carefully planned

In a systematic review of newspaper coverage of cases of child abuse, Cheit (2003) concluded: that the media tends to generally to over-report cases of sexual abuse (when compared to physical or psychological abuse) especially those which involve…

Stranger offenders or abuse outside of the home

When genders are reversed what are male teachers perceived as?

Having committed abuse, molestation, or rape of a minor

What is a consistent motivation for male and female homicides?

Arguments and fights

What is familicide?

Homicide of a family member

What is a reason that would trigger a female to kill her partner?

Fear of death or the safety of her children may likely trigger female homicide of her intimate partner or arguments and fights

What is the weapon of choice for a female offender when committing a homicide?

Knife

What is the second most common situation where a woman would kill a stranger?

To prevent a romance from occurring, to preserve their sexual or social reputation, and as a result of an ongoing feud. The next most often perpetrated is in the context of prostitution

Why do females kill other females?

To prevent a romance from occurring, to preserve their sexual or social reputation, and as a result of an ongoing feud.

Are women more likely to kill family members or strangers?

Family members

What is a similarity between male and female homicide offenders?

Immediate motivation for the majority of both women’s and men’s homicides are arguments and fights and the victims are usually male.

What type of homicides have the largest gender gap?

Females have consistently made up about 5-7% of those identified as perpetrators of a stranger homicide

What is covered and reported in the Supplementary Homicide Reports?

To address these questions about similarities and differences in female and male homicide offending

How do criminologists view sex offenders? Do they have preferred victim types?

Two views: Persistent sex offenders & Sexual polymorphism. Usually stick to one victim type.

What is the continuing involvement model and how does it relate to an offender’s criminal career?

Refers to the continuation stage of the offender’s criminal career. Clarke and Cornish’s 3 categories of variables of importance at this stage:

1. Increase in professionalism or offending experience

2. Changes in lifestyles and values

3. Changes in peer group

What role does adolescents play with child molesters?

Adolescents have low self-control

What is high sexualization?

Refers to a disinhibited sexuality characterized by sexual preoccupation, sexual compulsivity, and impersonal sex.

How does high sexualization impact victims and use of force?

Individuals characterized by a high sexualization might experience more difficulties in controlling their sexual urges.

How does predatory behavior relate to sexual intrusiveness and continuation in crime?

The tendency to achieve a different level of sexual intrusiveness from one crime to the next may be considered as a “predatory” type of continuation in crime.

What is a Static 99 form and what is it used for?

A risk assessment documenting the risk of sexual recidivism specifically for sex offenders

What is the average age of sex offenders in their first conviction?

On average, they were first convicted at age 35.2 (late in life)

What are the common criterion used to classify sex offenders?

Victim’s gender, victim’s age, offender-victim relationship, level of sexual intrusiveness, and the level of force used during the commission of the crime

What are the types of research methods used to gather data and which one was used in the Pittsburg Study?

Self-report questionnaire study based on a prospective longitudinal survey of the development of offending and antisocial behavior in three samples of about 500 Pittsburgh boys, totaling 1,517 boys

What is the strongest explanatory factor for homicide offenders?

Behavioral/Attitudinal Predictors significantly predicted homicide offenders: High risk score, Suspended from school, Disruptive behavior disorder, Favorable attitude to delinquency, Serious delinquency, Favorable attitude to substance use, and Peer delinquency.

What are the most important risk factors associated with race and predicted homicide offenders?

African American boys tended to be homicide offenders and victims; behavioral factors significantly predicted homicide offenders and victims: High risk score, Truancy, Serious delinquency, Covert behavior, Suspended from school, Cruel to people, and Peer delinquency

What is the strongest risk factor or behavioral factors that predicts a person becoming a homicide victim? How does low school achievement relate to becoming a homicide victim?

Victim risk: low guilt, low school achievement, behavior problems of the father, and old for the grade. Victim behavior: serious delinquency, a bad relationship with parents, and truancy. Being involved in school keeps you there and off the streets.

What is the strongest explanatory factor concerning homicide offenders?

high risk score/low self-control

The strongest predictor for homicide victims:

serious delinquency

Sexual polymorphism:

Refers to crime-switching patterns along several dimensions such as: Victim’s age, gender, relationship to the offender, and the nature or acts committed by the offender.

What is OSAP:

Oral sodomy as an active partner

OSPP:

Oral sodomy as a passive partner

ASAP:

Anal sodomy as a active partner

ASPP:

Anal sodomy as a passive partner

Active partner:

giving end

Passive partner:

Receiving end

Hypothesis that Sex offenders with low self-control are more…

Versatile in their sexual offending, diversity index of age, and level of force used.

What might a ‘general deviance” type of continuation be viewed as?

The tendency to offend against more than one age category across sexual offences

What would be considered a “predatory” type of continuation?

The tendency to achieve a different level of sexual intrusiveness from one crime to the next

What do offenders who abused an adult or a child initially switch to?

Adolescent victims as a sex surrogate

What do offenders who abused an adult or a child initially tend to switch to adolescent victims as a sex surrogate suggest?

That the phenomenon of crime-switching regarding age is not totally random

What would not, by itself, account for the tendency to offend against more than one age category?

Low self-control

Most crucial gender difference in homicide offending:

Who women and men kill

What percent of women kill family members?

60%

What percent of female victims are acquaintences?

30%

What percent of female victims are strangers?

10%

One notable change in the victim-offender relationship:

The decrease in the percent of victims who are intimate partners

The gender gap in homicide offending is greatest for:

Stranger homicides

Where do female offender homicides usually take place?

In her and/or the victim’s home

Where do male offender homicides usually take place?

In public places

In homicide, what weapon are men more likely to use?

A gun

Neonaticide is associated with:

Women

Familicide is associated with:

Men

Neonaticide:

Act of a parent murdering their child during the first 24 hours of their life

Familicide:

Multiple-victim homicide where an individual kills close family members