Editorial
| Pages | 1-2 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JIDOB-01-2017-0001 |
| Published date | 13 March 2017 |
| Date | 13 March 2017 |
| Author | Colin Dale |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Learning & intellectual disabilities,Offending behaviour,Sociology,Sociology of crime & law,Deviant behaviour,Education,Special education/gifted education,Emotional/behavioural disorders |
Colin Dale
Adrian Darakai (Deakin University), Andrew Day (James Cook University) and Joe Graffam
(Deakin University) consider public attitudes towards the employment of ex-offenders with a
disability. This is one of the only studies that has examined public attitudes towards this group.
Ex-prisoners ofte n face significant challen ges in their efforts to find mea ningful and stable work,
undermining their chances of successful reintegration back into the community.
These problems are li kely to be compounde d for those who have an inte llectual disabilit y,
given evidence that the disabled generally experience high levels of discrimination
when applying for a nd maintaining jobs . This study determi nes whether members o f the
public hold different attitudes and expectations towards the employment of ex-offenders who
have an intellectu al disability. Participants were pr esented with vignettes, and then comp leted
a short survey designed to measure their attitudes and expectations towards the employment
of ex-offenders. W hilst presence of a mild intellectual dis ability did not signif icantly affect
community attitudes towards ex-offender employment, it did change expectations about
employment outcomes.
The authors suggest that it appears that ex-offenders are perceived as a homogenous group of
people, despite actual and substantial differences existing within this population.
Grace Trundle, Leam Craig and Ian Stringer from Forensic Psychology Practice in Sutton
Coldfield in the UK present a case study on differentiating between pathological demand
avoidance (PDA) and antisocial personality disorder (ASPD).
This study seeks to explore the differing clinical features of PDA and ASPD presented in the form
of a single case study. The study highlights to practitioners in forensic settings the potential of
misdiagnosis and conceptual confusions between the two conditions when working with
offenders with personality disorders. The clinical similarities and differences between PDA and
ASPD are delineated. These differences and similarities are evaluated and applied to offender
management including intervention options.
The authors note that there are considerable similarities between ASPD and PDA making the two
conditions difficult to separate. Both diagnostic criteria identify childhood behavioural problems,
aggression, destructiveness, conduct disorder, manipulation and non-compliance as indicative
of the disorder. Misdiagnosis of PDA as ASPD reduces the efficiency of treatment programmes.
The implications of these findings could prove useful in the successful risk management of
offenders with PDA. Given the similar behavioural characteristics between PDA and ASPD, the
prevalence of PDA among offenders may be higher than observed.
Paula Johnson (Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust), David J.W. Evans (Lancaster University)
and Zulaikha Khan (Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust) consider whether an example of
Seclusion Room Contactless Monitoring Technology is able to accurately detect the presence of
life in a ward seclusion room ensuring patient well-being, without interference from background
“living noise”(e.g. voices) or “electronic noise”(e.g. other systems).
They assessed the system’s ability to monitor movement caused by human respiration through
its ability to discriminate false positives (i.e. presence of an inanimate object ±movement or
noise, in the absence of a person in the seclusion room) and false negatives (i.e. failure to detect a
human presence) in a ward setting.
The team suggest that their findings demonstrate that this example of technology is able to
monitor movement caused by human respiration and can accurately and reliably detect the
presence of life in seclusion rooms, in the ward setting, without interference from background
noise (living and electronic).
DOI 10.1108/JIDOB-01-2017-0001 VOL. 8 NO.1 2017, pp. 1-2, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2050-8824
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JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES AND OFFENDING BEHAVIOUR
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Editorial
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