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Browsing by Author "Maltais, Natasha"

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    Are we on the same page? Comparing the perceptions of professionals on overall sexual offending risk
    (2017) Maltais, Natasha; Jung, Sandy
    The current study will be looking at overall sexual risk perceptions of professionals who assess and treat sexual offenders. The participants will be members of the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ATSA), who will be asked to complete an online survey comprised of a vignette and a questionnaire. The vignette will describe a person who has offended sexually and will include one of three levels of risk (i.e., low, moderate, high). The questionnaire will also be comprised of basic questions about the participant, their role in conducting risk assessments, and their attitudes and individual characteristics. The survey will attempt to address three separate questions. First, we will be looking at how different risk categories are perceived. Second, participants will be asked about the intensity of treatment that they believe should be assigned to a given level of risk. Finally, the survey will examine the relationship between their perceptions and their political attitudes, general views on sexual offenders, and punitive attitudes of the participants. The findings from this study may provide insight into treatment providers’ perceptions of risk and how this may influence predictions of reoffending and treatment decisions, such as allocation of services. Their perceptions may also be associated with specific characteristics and traits, which will also be examined and may identify reason for these perceptions.
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    Are we on the same page? Comparing the perceptions of professionals on overall sexual violence risk
    (2018) Maltais, Natasha; Jung, Sandy
    The risk, need, and responsivity (RNR) model is currently the most evidence-supported model of treatment for offenders. Although there is ample research that focuses on the validation of the model, very few studies have examined how well professionals adhere to the principles of RNR. The current study investigated how professionals perceive sexual violence risk, what treatment dosages professionals recommend and how they quantify those dosages, if they can identify criminogenic needs and responsivity issues, and if individual attitudes of professionals influence risk perceptions. Additionally, the study examined if individual attitudes of professionals could have an influence on their perceptions of sexual violence risk. Twenty-nine members of the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ATSA) completed an online survey where they read a mock referral form about an individual who had sexually offended and completed a series of questionnaires. The findings revealed that professionals were more likely to use their own discretion when making risk-related decisions, disagreed on treatment dosage, and were unable to consistently identify criminogenic needs and responsivity issues. These results suggest that professionals may not be adhering as closely to the principles of RNR as would be expected and highlight the need for validated guidelines to ensure sound practice.