Examining the Relationship between Fire Interest and Firesetting: Contributions of Previous Experience with Fire and Self and Emotional Regulation

Sherrell, Rosalie

doi:10.26686/wgtn.14456463.v1

Cited by 4 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 68 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Yet, what appears to be most notable are the levels of fire interest reported in the current study. Similar to the findings of Sherrell (2021), which examined the relationship between fire interest and firesetting in an Aotearoa New Zealand community sample, the mean levels of fire interest reported by both our firesetting and non-firesetting participants were considerably higher than the levels reported in previous research with un-apprehended UK firesetting adults (Barrowcliffe & Gannon, 2015.…”

Section: What Factors Differentiate Between Firesetting and Non-fires...supporting

confidence: 82%

“…As suggested by Sherrell (2021), it is likely that the elevated interest in fire in Aotearoa New Zealand compared to the UK is indicative of its fire-supportive environment and culture (e.g., more rural areas, popularity of camping, traditional hāngi cooking). Regardless, the current findings emphasise that fire interest is an important factor associated with firesetting in unapprehended samples internationally.…”

Section: What Factors Differentiate Between Firesetting and Non-fires...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The final set of limitations centre around the item used to screen for firesetting behaviours. The current study utilised the firesetting disclosure question developed by Gannon and Barrowcliffe (2012), due to its previous validation and extensive use within the un-apprehended literature (Barrowcliffe & Gannon, 2015Barrowcliffe et al, 2019;Gannon & Barrowcliffe, 2012;Sherrell, 2021). However, because this question focuses on identifying firesetting for antisocial and fire interest purposes, it may have failed to capture fires set for alternative reasons (e.g., as a cry-for-help, in response to psychotic symptoms).…”

Section: Strengths and Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Factors Associated with Un-Apprehended Deliberate Firesetting in an Aotearoa New Zealand Community Sample

Johnston¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

<p>The firesetting literature has predominantly focused on apprehended populations, yet very few perpetrators of deliberate fire incidents are formerly identified or convicted. This research aimed to gather a deeper understanding of un-apprehended firesetting individuals by examining the prevalence of deliberate firesetting in the Aotearoa New Zealand general population, as well as the factors that differentiate between (i) firesetting and non-firesetting individuals, (ii) one-time and repeat firesetting individuals, and (iii) adolescent-limited, adult-persistent, and adult-only firesetting individuals. An anonymous online survey was completed by 626 adults, of which 103 (16.45%) self-reported having deliberately set a fire over the age of 14 years for antisocial or interest purposes. Relative to non-firesetting individuals, firesetting individuals were more likely to report having a high school qualification as their highest educational attainment, a history of a mental health diagnosis, and higher scores on measures of fire-interest, impulsivity, fearful attachment styles, anger, and antisocial associates. The strongest predictor of firesetting status was holding a high school qualification as the highest educational attainment. Relative to one-time firesetting individuals, repeat firesetting individuals were more likely to be older at their last incident of deliberate firesetting and scored higher on measures of fire interest, with age at last deliberate firesetting incident being the strongest predictor of repeat firesetting status. Finally, adolescent-limited, adult-persistent, and adult-only firesetting individuals could be differentiated on number of fires set and ages at first and last deliberate firesetting incidents. The strongest predictor of adult-persistent firesetting status was having a history of a mental health diagnosis. These findings greatly advance our understanding of un-apprehended firesetting behaviour; highlighting the need for tailored, multifaceted prevention initiatives, and theories specific to the unique population of un-apprehended firesetting individuals.</p>

show abstract

Section: What Factors Differentiate Between Firesetting and Non-fires...supporting

confidence: 82%

Section: What Factors Differentiate Between Firesetting and Non-fires...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Strengths and Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Factors Associated with Un-Apprehended Deliberate Firesetting in an Aotearoa New Zealand Community Sample

Johnston¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…A replication of the AMP facet of this study in laboratory conditions would be helpful [2]. Furthermore, it might be more meaningful to explore frequency of early fire exposure (as done by Murray et al , 2015 and Sherrell, 2021), alongside type, as a correlate of fire-liking as measured by the AMP.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It should be apparent that research drawing a link between early fire exposure and adult fire behaviours is somewhat equivocal. Further, there is also conceptual debate, for example, Sherrell (2021) draws upon a binary perspective of participants as either firesetters or non-firesetters, a position that has prevailed in the literature (cf. Barrowcliffe and Gannon, 2015, 2016; Ducat et al , 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring explicit and implicit correlates of early anti-social fire exposure and everyday fire use in adulthood

Horsley

James

Baker

et al. 2022

JCRPP

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose This study aims to explore whether early anti-social fire exposure (ASFE) is associated with how adults engage with fire and how they view fire. Design/methodology/approach An opportunistic sample (N = 326) was recruited. Participants completed an online survey exploring ASFE, fire use, strength of fire-beliefs and interest in/attitudes supportive of fire. Additionally, implicit fire bias was measured using the affect misattribution procedure (AMP). Findings Participants with ASFE engaged with more criminalised fire use as adults. They also scored higher on fire interest and general fire beliefs and showed an implicit dislike of fire stimuli, compared to non-exposed participants (although differences in fire use were not statistically significant when gender was accounted for). Males also had higher levels of fire interest, held stronger fire related beliefs and were more likely to have been exposed to ASFE during childhood. However, there were no gender differences in fire use or on the implicit task. Research limitations/implications The findings have practical application, namely in relation to early intervention and rehabilitative approaches. However, a limitation is that participants’ cultural background were not accounted for. Additionally, we advise caution in interpreting the implicit results and call for further research. Social implications The need for better early interventions for young people is highlighted, along with better screening which, currently, is unstandardised and inconsistent across the country (Foster, 2020). This demands a community-engagement approach. Originality/value This is the first study to explore type of early exposure to fire. It is also the first to adopt the AMP as a measure of implicit fire-bias.

show abstract

Fire messaging: a qualitative exploration of how adults teach children about fire

Horsley,

Birrell,

Gouldthorp

et al. 2024

JCRPP

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose Research indicates that children’s early experience of fire can influence what and how they learn about fire. In turn, early fire-learning can influence how people come to use it later in life, including whether they engage in maladaptive use, i.e. firesetting. Little is known about the underlying mechanisms of fire-learning, which was the basis for this study. The research question was: “how do adults educate children about fire in the UK/ Ireland”? The purpose of this study was to explore the child fire education process from an adult perspective. Design/methodology/approach Semi-structured interviews was conducted with 21 fire-educators who had regular contact with children. Data was analysed using abbreviated grounded theory. Steps were taken to ensure reliability and validity, including a Cohen’s Kappa calculation, indicating an agreement level of 0.9 between two raters. Findings Four core themes were identified: the fire narrative, enabling growth, risk management, and communication, from which the fire-learning process model (F-LPM) was formed. Research limitations/implications The main limitation is the nature of the sample, in that it was diverse and self-selecting. Practical implications The findings are discussed, including how they offer support for social learning theory (SLT) perspectives on fire-learning. Social implications The social construction of fire (i.e. the way fire is viewed by society as a whole in the UK/ Ireland) is discussed in depth, and cultural variability is highlighted. Suggestions are made for how the societal view of fire and, consequently, how adults convey this to young people, could be better balanced. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study in the UK/ Ireland to consider how adults educate young people about fire from a concurrent perspective. This is important given that research indicates early experiences of fire can impact how people later go on to use it (including maladaptive use in the form of firesetting).

show abstract

Examining the Relationship between Fire Interest and Firesetting: Contributions of Previous Experience with Fire and Self and Emotional Regulation

Cited by 4 publications

References 68 publications

Factors Associated with Un-Apprehended Deliberate Firesetting in an Aotearoa New Zealand Community Sample

Factors Associated with Un-Apprehended Deliberate Firesetting in an Aotearoa New Zealand Community Sample

Exploring explicit and implicit correlates of early anti-social fire exposure and everyday fire use in adulthood

Fire messaging: a qualitative exploration of how adults teach children about fire

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About