Individuals who sexually offend are commonly misunderstood as being high risk. According to the risk–need–responsivity (RNR) principles, treatment and supervision levels should be determined by actuarial risk for the best outcomes. To date, no studies have examined these principles with individuals on supervision for a sexual offense. This study applies the RNR principles to a sample of 133 men and women serving probated sentences for a sexual offense and mandated to specialized treatment. Results indicate low-risk individuals convicted of a sexual offense were more likely to be compliant with probation and treatment than moderate-risk individuals. An analysis of risk level and supervision overrides ( N = 75) provides support for the prediction that low-risk individuals supervised at high levels may be more likely to have compliance problems. Results suggest similar outcomes when violating the risk principle for individuals who have sexually offended to the findings among general justice-involved people.

The rate at which women experience incarceration has increased substantially over the last four decades. Justice-involved women are often the primary caretakers of children and suffer more often from mental health, substance use, and other issues at higher rates than justice-involved males. Previous research has noted the need for gender-responsive programming, but less research has explored women inmate perceptions of the programming within women correctional facilities. This qualitative study examined 545 incarcerated women across multiple institutions in a large Southern prison system. We asked incarcerated women about their perceptions of accessibility, needs, benefits, and problems in correctional programming. Findings indicate that women’s programming may still not adequately address gender-based needs. Additionally, women among the sample identified several programming-related issues.

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