Working with sex offenders: Best practice in enhancing practitioner resilience

Abstract

The systematic and widespread treatment of sex offenders is a comparatively recent innovation in the human services field. Consequently, research considering the impact of such work on providers and organisations is still in its infancy. The first swathe of international research, published throughout the 1990s, identified a range of deleterious effects for treatment providers, ranging from mild anxiety to severe psychological morbidity. More recent findings indicate a considerably more optimistic psychological future. This paper seeks to provide the reader with an overview of the relevant literature, together with its shortcomings, and introduce the Model of Dynamic Adaptation (MDA), a framework through which variables associated with both positive and negative outcomes may be grouped and managed. It is proposed that understanding and managing the MDA can support both individuals and organisations in achieving their goals in good psychological health, through the development and implementation of informed, evidence-based, best practice strategies.

‘I put my “police head” on’: Coping strategies for working with sexual offending material

“…Factors found to affect coping ability in professionals working with sexual trauma include personal trauma history (Way, VanDeusen, Martin, Applegate, & Jandle, 2004) and high levels of rumination and empathy (Clarke, 2011). Lower levels of negative reactivity have been linked to greater emotional intelligence (Sandhu, Rose, Rostill-Brookes & Thrift, 2012; Dean & Barnett, 2010) and having a positive perspective, for example the belief that individuals have the capacity to change for the better (Slater & Lambie, 2010).…”

Holding the Child (and Practitioner) in Mind? Youth Justice Practitioners’ Experiences Supervising Young People Displaying Sexually Harmful Behavior

“…Another useful approach for bolstering resilience in practitioners dealing with challenging clients is the Model of Dynamic Adaptation (Clarke, 2004(Clarke, , 2008(Clarke, , 2011. It incorporates a range of individual static (e.g.…”

“…Another useful approach for bolstering resilience in practitioners dealing with challenging clients is the model of dynamic adaptation (Clarke, 2004, 2008, 2011). It incorporates a range of individual static (e.g., age, gender), stable (e.g., coping style) and dynamic factors (e.g., changes to organizational structures), and critical occupation factors (e.g., colleague relationships, policies and procedures) all of which are important when also considering the current economic climate, with many services integrating resources to reduce expenditure.…”

Child Sexual Abuse Workers’ Emotional Experiences of Working Therapeutically in the Western Cape, South Africa

“…Additional traits that reportedly assist participants in their work include self knowledge, assertiveness, persistence, commitment, kindness, and compassion. Contempt and compassion for the context of child sexual abuse might mirror one participant's defensive splitting (Clarke 2011;McWilliams 1994) Rustin (2001) suggests that child sexual abuse workers remain open to self examination and realistic about their limits, and participants concur: ''Self awareness is important for self preservation. Be realistic, know your limits'' (Participant 2).…”

“…One participant's minimising defence and ability to contain her emotional responses contribute to composure under pressure (Clarke 2011;Rustin 2001;Samios et al 2012): ''I can stay calm and sort things out. I minimise so I can handle it for now'' (Participant 1).…”