Assessing Risk: Gender responsive considerations

1. Assessing Risk: Gender responsive considerations Samantha Crawford & Sarah Passmore Higher Assistant Psychologists

2. Objectives • Statistics • Female pathways into offending • Issues women encounter in prison • Risk Assessments • Ways Forward

3. Statistics 1 Sentence Length Women: 12 months – less than 4 years 1,189 Men: 4 years or more (excluding indeterminate) 23,406 Women in prison 3,814 (4.82%) June 2013 www.justice.gov.uk/statistics

4. Statistics 2 - Offence Types www.justice.gov.uk/statistics

5. Female pathways into offending “The most common pathways to crime are based on survival (of abuse and poverty) and substance abuse” (Bloom, Owen & Covington, 2003) • Women as victims as well as offenders • Relationships • Mental illness • Substance abuse • Little education/work experience • Homelessness/Accommodation Loucks, 2004; Corston, 2007; A Distinct Approach: A Guide to Working with Women Offenders – NOMS 2012

6. Issues women encounter in prison Separation from children Self Harm Effects of separation on the children Location of prison from home area Pregnancy/birth in prison Hormonal difficulties

7. Risk Assessments What are risk assessments? “The assessment of risk for future sexual/violent behaviour in patients/offenders with a violent history and/or mental disorder” (De Vogel, 2012)

8. Assessments used with Female Offenders

9. Why have more gender specific risk assessments?

10. HCR-20Assessing Risk for Violence (Webster, Douglas, Eaves & Hart, 1997)

11. Female Additional Manual (FAM) 1 • The Female Additional Manual (FAM) is a recently developed addition to the HCR-20 for assessing risk for violence in women.(De Vogel, de Vries Robbe, van Kalmthout & Place, 2011) • Several risk factors for violent behaviour in women differ substantially from those in men. • The increased number of violent crimes being committing by women and the different pathways into crime is highlighting the need for gender specific risk assessments.

12. Case Study...

13. Case Study - Miss A Profile Miss A: 26 year old female Index offence: Murder Previous offences: theft, assaulting a constable Background Information Parents separated age 7 Neglect and physical and sexual abuse as a child Witnessed domestic violence Behavioural difficulties at school Taken in to care age 12 Substance misuse Pregnancy at young age Postnatal depression Prostitution Prison Behaviour Self harm Low self esteem Manipulation Borderline personality disorder

14. What would be missed?

15. H6 Major Mental Illness H7Psychopathy H8 Early Maladjustment H8a Problematic Circumstances during childhood H8b Problematic behaviour during childhood H9 Personality Disorder – cluster B PDs H10 Prior supervision failure H11 Prostitution H12 Parenting difficulties H13 Pregnancy at young age H14 Suicidality/Self harm H15 Victimization after childhood Female Additional Manual (FAM) 2 De Vogel, de Vries Robbe, van Kalmthout & Place, 2011

16. Clinical Items Covert/Manipulative behaviour Low self esteem Risk Management Items Problematic child care responsibility Problematic intimate relationship Female Additional Manual (FAM) 3

17. Index offence: Murder Pregnancy at young age Self harm Prostitution Manipulation Neglect and physical and sexual abuse as a child Postnatal depression Borderline personality disorder

18. Future Directions for Risk Assessments The increased number of violent offences committed by women have highlighting the need for gender sensitive risk assessment. The pathways into offending seem to differ from those of males including substance misuse, abuse and mental health problems, prostitution and there are more likely to be missed in traditional risk assessments. FAM development are a step forward in adopting a more gender sensitive approach to assessment and risk and an important factor when assessing risk on female offenders.