Goals and Purposes of Correctional Counseling

Restorative Justice

Humanizing justice by bringing victims and offenders together to correct the wrong done.

Trying to restore the situation to its pre-crime status.

What are the three balanced Approach’s of Restorative Justice?

•community protection

•offender accountability

•offender competency

Restorative justice is a new model where..

• victimizer and victim must see basic fairness and justice in this process

• Has roots in both rehabilitation and retribution

• Humanizes justice by bringing offender and victim together

• Victim must also be restored to whole again

• Calls for reconciliation

What are the Goals of Correctional Counseling?

•Adjustment to society, community, institutions

•Therapeutic intervention to change behavior, attitudes, desires, beliefs

Case Management is..

•Proactive

•Developing strategies that help offenders live up to community standards

•Designing, implementing and managing programs of activity

•Assisting them in leading law abiding lives

Responsivity Principle is..

Being responsive to their needs and abilities

An assessment is

Formal evaluation and analysis of       

• deficiencies

• needs

• risks

 strengths

How is assessment done?

•With tested and researched instruments

•By professionals

Kinds of Assessment

•Psychological

•Intellectual

•Developmental problems

•Reading level

•Suicidal Potential

•Assaultive Potential

•Sex Offender Evaluation

•Chemical Dependency

•Self-reports and collateral reports

•Probation information

What are we looking for during assessment?

•Patterns

•Family History

•Transmission of Legacy

•Psychopathology

•Estimating Recidivism

•Level of Denial and Responsibility

•Good Options Available

Psychological Assessment

¡Sanity/insanity

¡Pattern of substance abuse

¡Erratic patterns

¡To help the system make the best choices

Intellectual Assessment

¡Is client “developmentally disabled”?

¡Assessment of reading level as indicator of educational defcieincies or developmental disabilities

Suicidal/Assaultive Potential

¡Lethality of previous events

¡Low or High?

¡Hanging, firearm, pills, wrists?

¡Pattern of violent behavior?

¡Pattern of self-destructive behavior?

¡History of depression?

¡Family histories

Chemical Dependency Assessment

¡Self-reports

¡Collateral reports

¡Depends on honesty and availability

Sex Offender Assessment

¡Level of denial – High or Low?

¡Pattern of behavior

¡History as victim

¡Always looking for patterns and family history

¡3 generations … transmission of legacy

Full assessment

¡Takes 3-4 hours

¡Examine dress, body language, voice, speech problems

¡Notice anything that would inhibit getting client back into the mainstream

¡Psychopathology is least difficult to assess

Correctional Counseling

•Helping offenders explore their feelings and concerns

•Helping offenders behave responsibly

•Increasing their awareness of the self-destructive nature of their behavior

¡Building on strengths

¡Removing barrier to self-direction and growth

¡Uncovering resources for a pro-social lifestyle

Effective Risking

¡What kind of risks have our clients typically taken?

¡Hint:  Impulsive risks

¡What new kinds of risks do we hope they will take?

¡Hint:  Risking overcoming their fears (emotional, educational, vocational)

Correctional counceling clients..

•Are not voluntary

•Do not have healthy coping mechanisms

•Have a psychological and economic investment in their current lifestyle

How does counseling differ from psychotherapy?

¡Pathology vs Deficiency

¡Intrapersonal vs Interpersonal

¡Depth & Serious of Problems

Probation Officer Responsibilities

•Facilitating competency-development groups

•Community service

•Victims’ advocacy

•Monitoring weekend detention

•Employment programs

•Education programs

•Anger Management

Decision Making