• Login
    View Item 
    •   Home
    • Research Publications
    • Business, Law and Social Sciences
    • Department of Social Sciences
    • View Item
    •   Home
    • Research Publications
    • Business, Law and Social Sciences
    • Department of Social Sciences
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    Browse

    All of UDORACommunitiesTitleAuthorsIssue DateSubmit DateSubjectsThis CollectionTitleAuthorsIssue DateSubmit DateSubjects

    My Account

    LoginRegister

    About and further information

    AboutOpen Access WebpagesOpen Access PolicyTake Down Policy University Privacy NoticeUniversity NewsTools for ResearchersLibraryUDo

    Statistics

    Display statistics

    Executive functioning as a predictive measure of offending behaviour.

    • CSV
    • RefMan
    • EndNote
    • BibTex
    • RefWorks
    Thumbnail
    Name:
    Executive Functioning .....pdf
    Size:
    489.6Kb
    Format:
    PDF
    Description:
    Post-print
    Download
    Authors
    Spenser, Karin A. cc
    Bull, Ray
    Betts, Lucy
    Winder, Belinda
    Affiliation
    University of Derby
    Nottingham Trent University
    Issue Date
    2019-01-24
    
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Abstract
    Prosociality is considered important in the study of offenders and associated cognitive skills: theory of mind, empathic understanding and moral reasoning, are said to enable self-control and reduce the risk of offending behaviours. Previous research has made associations between these skills and executive functioning; however, research into a link between them, in an offending population, is limited. The paper aims to discuss this issue. To further understand the practicalities of this, the present study considered the predictive abilities of the constructs believed to underpin executive functioning: working memory, cognitive flexibility and inhibitory control, in relation to theory of mind, empathic understanding and moral reasoning. In total, 200 male and female offenders completed measures in all six constructs. Using path analysis working memory was demonstrated to be predictive of theory of mind and empathic understanding, cognitive flexibility was found to be predictive of theory of mind, and inhibitory control was found to be predictive of theory of mind, empathic understanding and moral reasoning. The study focussed on offenders serving a custodial sentence of six months or less and did not differentiate between crime categories or take into consideration the socio-environmental backgrounds or ethnicity. Therefore, considering these things could further establish the generalisability of the current findings. It is noted that the more focused the intervention is to the specific needs of an offender, the greater the impact will be. Therefore, pre-screening tests for the constructs discussed may be able to more accurately assess an offenders’ suitability for a programme, or indeed tailor it to meet the specific needs of that person. These findings may enable practitioners to more accurately assess offenders’ suitability for interventions aimed at reducing offending behaviours by improving levels of prosociality and develop more focused programmes to meet the specific needs of individual offenders to reduce re-offending. As recommended in the study, a more tailored approach to offender rehabilitation may be a potential aid to reducing levels of recidivism. The present study adds to the literature as it is the first to consider whether the constructs of executive functioning can predict levels of theory of mind, empathic understanding and moral reasoning and so provide a more accurate method in assessing the cognitive abilities of offenders prior to participation in rehabilitative interventions.
    Citation
    Spenser, K.A., Bull, R., Betts, L. and Winder, B., (2019). Executive functioning as a predictive measure of offending behaviour. Journal of Criminal Psychology. DOI: 10.1108/JCP-07-2018-0032.
    Publisher
    Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
    Journal
    Journal of Criminal Psychology.
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/10545/623401
    DOI
    10.1108/JCP-07-2018-0032
    Additional Links
    https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/10.1108/JCP-07-2018-0032
    Type
    Article
    Language
    en
    ISSN
    2009-3829
    ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
    10.1108/JCP-07-2018-0032
    Scopus Count
    Collections
    Department of Social Sciences

    entitlement

     
    DSpace software (copyright © 2002 - 2021)  DuraSpace
    Quick Guide | Contact Us
    Open Repository is a service operated by 
    Atmire NV
     

    Export search results

    The export option will allow you to export the current search results of the entered query to a file. Different formats are available for download. To export the items, click on the button corresponding with the preferred download format.

    By default, clicking on the export buttons will result in a download of the allowed maximum amount of items.

    To select a subset of the search results, click "Selective Export" button and make a selection of the items you want to export. The amount of items that can be exported at once is similarly restricted as the full export.

    After making a selection, click one of the export format buttons. The amount of items that will be exported is indicated in the bubble next to export format.