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Anthony Walsh
Jessica Wells
Shaun M. Gann
Correctional
Assessment,
Casework, and
Counseling
6th Edition
Correctional Assessment, Casework,
and Counseling
Anthony Walsh • Jessica Wells
Shaun M. Gann
Correctional Assessment,
Casework, and Counseling
Sixth Edition
Anthony Walsh Jessica Wells
Department of Criminal Justice Department of Criminal Justice
Boise State University Boise State University
Boise, ID, USA Boise, ID, USA
Shaun M. Gann
Department of Criminal Justice
Boise State University
Boise, ID, USA
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland
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Preface
In the introduction to the first edition of this book, Dr. Walsh wrote:
Most social work and psychology texts to which many of us have had to turn for guidance
in interviewing and counseling do not respond to the special needs of criminal justice cli-
ents. These works proceed on the assumption that counseling clients are largely self-
selected and are motivated to explore the problems that brought them to the counselor’s
office. Criminal justice clients, on the other hand, are usually extremely reluctant to be in
any counseling situation, are often impervious to the problems that led to such a situation,
and typically have a congenital dislike for anyone who works for the system. This book
assesses the special problems of interviewing and counseling under these conditions.
These words continue to be true in this sixth edition because nothing has changed
about offenders since then (they are still not thrilled with what we offer and still do
not like us very much). A number of publishers have discovered the need for inter-
viewing and counseling texts specific to corrections since the first edition of this
book, however. Good! Competition keeps us all on our toes and constantly improv-
ing; hence, the sixth edition of this book. Although the first edition was widely
recognized as the most complete and comprehensive book of its kind, we have con-
tinued to make improvements over the various editions. This edition has improved
on the earlier editions in a number of ways:
1. We extensively updated the entire book using the latest research, data, and
statistics.
2. Many chapters were restructured so that the information flows more smoothly.
3. Chapter 5 now includes a more thorough discussion of the four generations of
risk and needs assessments.
4. We added a section to Chap. 7 that discusses the Principles of Effective
Intervention and the “Central Eight” risk factors that should be addressed in
treatment programs.
5. We included a more detailed discussion of the theoretical backdrop to Reality
Therapy in Chap. 8.
6. Chapter 10 now includes a discussion of the prisonization and importation
models of inmate behavior.
7. The list of national volunteer groups for offenders and victims in Chap. 11 has
been updated and expanded.
v
vi Preface
voluminous and diverse sources all that is necessary, and not merely nice, to know.
We hope that we have done that in this book.
ix
Contents
1 Introduction������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 1
1.1 Casework, Assessment, Counseling, and Criminal Justice���������������� 2
1.2 The Usefulness of Theory ������������������������������������������������������������������ 4
1.3 Correctional Philosophy and Restorative Justice�������������������������������� 6
1.4 Summary �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 9
References���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 9
2 The Self: Principal Tool of the Correctional Helper������������������������������ 11
2.1 The Self-Concept�������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 11
2.2 Self-Esteem ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 13
2.3 Qualities of Effective Correctional Workers �������������������������������������� 15
2.3.1 The Correctional Worker Must Possess a Thorough
Knowledge of Criminal Behavior and Its Correlates�������������� 16
2.3.2 The Correctional Worker Must Be Realistic:
Neither a Pollyanna nor a Cassandra�������������������������������������� 16
2.3.3 Correctional Workers Do Not Use Offenders
to Satisfy Their Needs������������������������������������������������������������ 17
2.3.4 The Correctional Worker Inspires Trust, Confidence,
and Credibility������������������������������������������������������������������������ 18
2.3.5 The Correctional Worker Reaches Inward as well
as Outward������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 18
2.4 The Benefits of Self-Disclosure���������������������������������������������������������� 19
2.4.1 Improving Your Self-Concept Through Self-Disclosure�������� 21
2.4.2 The Johari Window: An Aid to Self-Understanding �������������� 22
2.4.3 Application to the Offender���������������������������������������������������� 24
2.5 The Mask�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 25
2.6 Summary �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 26
2.7 Exercises in Self-Exploration Through Disclosure���������������������������� 27
References���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 28
3 Interviewing and Interrogating���������������������������������������������������������������� 31
3.1 Purpose of the Criminal Justice Interview������������������������������������������ 32
3.1.1 The Offender �������������������������������������������������������������������������� 32
3.1.2 Prepare and Plan �������������������������������������������������������������������� 32
xi
xii Contents
Afterword������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 499
Index�������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 501
Introduction
1
In high school, many Americans had to read Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic The
Scarlet Letter, first published in 1850. In the opening sentence of that book he
wrote: “The founders of a new colony, whatever Utopia of human virtue and happi-
ness they might originally project, have invariably recognized it among their earliest
practical necessities to allot a portion of the virgin soil as a cemetery, and another
portion as the site of a prison” (2003, p. 1). What Hawthorne is impressing on us is
that there are two things we cannot avoid—death and human corruption—and that
we must make provisions for both. The purpose of this book is to introduce students
to the process of “correcting” the kind of human failings we call crime. We have
correctional agencies charged with attempting to change undesirable (criminal)
behavior to desirable or appropriate behavior while offenders are in custody (jail or
prison) or under supervision (probation or parole).
Figure 1.1 shows the number of people under the various types of correctional
supervision from 2006 to 2016 (note that since so many offenders find themselves
on probation or parole, community supervision can be considered the backbone of
corrections in the United States). The figure shows that there are many people whom
society expects correctional workers to change for the better. Consequently, the first
lesson in this book is that the correctional worker is in the behavior-change business
and in the community protection business. These amount to the same thing because
whatever helps offenders to jettison their criminal ways is at the same time a bless-
ing for the community at large.
A great deal of skepticism and cynicism surround the corrective process, exem-
plified by the frequently heard lament that “nothing works.” This sentiment has
some basis in reality, but in many ways, it is not warranted. If we believe that “noth-
ing works,” then we will tend to operate consistently with this belief, and the out-
comes will justify our beliefs. If we believe that people can change and that many
of them do so every day, then we will act in accordance with that belief and will find
it vindicated—prophecies tend to be self-fulfilling.
Of course, you will run into some people for whom nothing works. Realize also
that nothing works for everybody. Nevertheless, some things work for some people
some of the time, and other things work for other people at other times. The failure
rate in probation and parole (in other words, those sent to or returned to prison for
violating the terms of their supervision) is a disheartening 50–65%; but on the bright
side, this means the success rate is 35–50% (Durose, Cooper, & Snyder, 2014).
Furthermore, ample evidence proves that we could improve this success rate by
implementing programs that research consistently shows to reduce recidivism sub-
stantially (Lipsey & Cullen, 2007). Let us focus on the positive while never losing
sight of the negative.
which the aim is to prevent that “something wrong” from ever happening in the first
place. The motivating idea behind proactive correctional casework is not “bleeding-
heartism.” It recognizes that the best protection for the community is through strate-
gies that aid offenders to live up to community standards. The community is safe to
the extent that those who prey on it cease to do so.
Proactive case management involves the design and implementation of moni-
tored programs of activity with the goal of assisting offenders to lead productive and
law-abiding lives. Everything in this book is about proactive case management.
Good (effective) case management involves the responsivity principle (Stohr &
Walsh, 2018). This principle essentially means that whatever you do for and with
offenders must be responsive to their needs and abilities. Integral components of
good proactive casework are assessment and counseling. Working within the
responsivity principle, Marshall and Serran (2004, p. 311) state: “The only way to
understand the client’s abilities and learning style is to conduct a comprehensive
assessment prior to treatment.”
Assessment is the process of subjecting offenders to a formal evaluation and
analysis of their deficiencies, needs, and the risks they pose to the community so
that the counselor can develop realistic counseling plans and strategies. To accom-
plish this assessment, the counselor uses well-researched and tested instruments,
some of which are included or referenced in this book. Attempting to supervise,
counsel, and otherwise help an offender without a thorough assessment is rather like
a physician performing surgery without first conducting a thorough diagnostic
workup of a patient.
Counseling is a process in which the counselor leads offenders to explore their
feelings, thoughts, and concerns; in the case of offenders, many of those feelings
and concerns have led them to behave irresponsibly. We hope that the counseling
process will lead offenders to an increased awareness of the self-destructive nature
of their behavior and alternative behavior choices. It aims at removing barriers to
self-direction and personal growth and uncovering resources that offenders can use
to forge a prosocial lifestyle.
Correctional counseling is different from general counseling in three important
ways:
1. Offenders, generally, do not seek counseling voluntarily. Therefore, you are
more likely to encounter reluctance and resistance to the counseling process than
you would be in other counseling settings.
2. Offenders, in general, have fewer coping resources on which to draw than do
clients in other counseling settings.
3. Offenders often have a psychological and economic investment in retaining their
current lifestyle. These differences led to the writing of this book. Few general
counseling texts address the special problems of dealing with offenders’ special
needs.
Correctional counselors also enjoy an advantage in corrections that counselors in
other areas do not have. This advantage is that we often possess a wealth of verified
information about offenders’ backgrounds and past behavior from a variety of
sources such as juvenile files, police reports, and social and psychological
4 1 Introduction
evaluations. This information allows us to assess offenders more readily than coun-
selors can in many other settings.
However, before physicians conduct a diagnostic workup, they must have a
grounding in the disease or condition that could account for the patient’s symptoms.
Similarly, correctional workers should have grounding in the causes of the type of
behavior that they are trying to correct. With this analogy in mind, the authors have
structured this book around understanding criminal behavior and its correlates,
assessing the individual problems and needs of offenders, and using that under-
standing and knowledge to counsel offenders effectively.
Criminology is the study of the causes of crime. It is, or should be, an interdisci-
plinary study, encompassing genetics, neurology, physiology, psychology, econom-
ics, and sociology (Walsh & Ellis, 2007). Yet, much of criminology is limited to
sociological analysis. Sociologists often ignore individual differences. One gets the
impression from sociological criminology that everything is responsible for crime
except the people who commit it. While sociological insights are important in
understanding crime, they do not exhaust the causal possibilities. But this is not a
textbook on criminological theory, and we assume almost all readers have had a
class in criminology prior to taking this course. We thus begin with a discussion of
the usefulness of theory in general
Workers in any field must understand the nature of the phenomena with which they
work. As a correctional practitioner or as a student aspiring to be a practitioner, you
must understand the phenomenon of crime and its causation so that you may deal
more effectively with offenders under your supervision. As Goff and Owens (1999,
p. 25) put it: “Public policy and agency practice in the field of probation and parole
must be guided by a theory of why people commit crime. To intervene [to prevent
further offending] there must be an understanding of the causative factors of the
original offense.” Cullen and Gendreau (2000, p. 145) augment this view: “[C]
orrectional treatments must be based on criminological knowledge.” Theories of
crime seek to offer plausible explanations of how to link together the correlates of
crime. Facts rarely speak for themselves; theories of their interrelationships give
voice to what would otherwise be a babble of unintelligible static. A theory is an
intellectual scaffold around which the practitioner constructs an edifice of useful
knowledge. Empirical facts are the bricks of the edifice, each one slotted into its
proper place to form a coherent whole. People wonder, given the numerous compet-
ing theories of crime, which one is “true.”
Physicians do not ask which theory of disease is the true one, because there are
many different kinds of diseases with many different causes. No physicians ever
treat a person for “illness.” Rather, they treat a specific disease syndrome. Like dis-
ease, criminal behavior is not a unitary phenomenon explicable in terms of a single
cause or set of causes, but we tend to think and act as if it were when we treat all
offenders for “criminality.” Even treatment for specific disease syndromes often
1.2 The Usefulness of Theory 5
varies according to such things as age and gender and is differentially successful
according to how cooperative patients are, their personality type, and the level of
psychosocial support they enjoy. Why should it be any different when dealing with
offenders in all their diversity?
Theories about crime and criminality and its treatment or programming efforts
must be context-specific, but even then, one cannot consider any theory true in any
absolute sense. Truth for the scientist is tentative, relative, and open to qualification
and falsification. If a theory generates useful empirical research and provides order
and consistency within the domain of interest, we are more faithful to the spirit of
science to call it adequate than to call it true. A good theory conforms to the prag-
matic, correspondence, and coherence theories of truth as outlined by philosophers
of science. That is, a theory is useful to the extent that it:
1. Provides useful guidance for the further exploration of the phenomena of
interest
2. Corresponds with the factual data already known about the phenomena of
interest
3. Fits those data into propositions to form a logically connected and coherent
whole
The usefulness of a given theory is context-specific. This means it must address
the specific kinds of questions asked. It would be of little help to a sociologist seek-
ing to explain fluctuations in the crime rate over the past 50 years, for instance, to
learn that neurophysiologists have discovered that a certain category of criminal
shows a higher than expected frequency of dysfunction involving certain regions of
the brain. Likewise, the neurophysiologist is little interested in the sociocultural
variables alleged by the sociologists to account for differentials in the crime rate.
Becoming sensitive to the various contextual perspectives—sociological, psy-
chological, or biological—does not mean that you have to become an expert in them
all, which is impossible. It does mean that you should become acquainted with them
and understand their language. Much of the heat generated by theorists of different
persuasions results from failing to distinguish between crime and criminality. Crime
refers to socially disapproved behavior. Rates of crime fluctuate with various social,
political, and economic conditions over time. Anyone can fall afoul of the law and
commit an out-of-character crime given a chance permutation of factors conducive
to it. Criminality, on the other hand, refers to “stable differences across individuals
in the propensity to commit criminal (or equivalent) acts” (Wilson & Herrnstein,
1985, p. 23). Crime is thus a fluctuating property of sociopolitical systems, but
criminality is relatively stable in individuals.
It is fair to say that sociologists are more interested in crime, and other types of
scientists are more interested in criminality. As a correctional worker dealing with
individuals, quite naturally, you will find theories dealing with individuals’ behavior
and their immediate environment to be the most suitable for your purposes. After
all, these are the areas most accessible to perception and most amenable to change
within the context of the correctional worker/offender relationship. Nevertheless,
when you are engaged in interviewing, assessing, and counseling criminal offend-
ers, you will be able to perform the task more professionally if you have an adequate
6 1 Introduction
understanding of crime causation at all levels, especially at the level of the personal
attributes and unique experiences individuals bring to them.
This book is about correctional casework, assessment, counseling theory, and prac-
tice, without a great deal of attention to the broader topic of correctional theory and
practice. However, the area of correctional theory—with broad applicability to our
purposes—is the ideology or philosophy of punishment and justice that is in vogue
within the criminal justice system at any given time. The prevailing correctional
philosophy influences correctional workers’ day-to-day practices and decisions
relating to offenders whether they are aware of it or not (Lauen, 1997).
Two guiding philosophies have jockeyed for preeminence throughout the present
century: the retributive and the rehabilitative (sometimes referred to as the just des-
erts and treatment models, respectively). Both philosophies are offender-driven
(i.e., what do we do with the offender?). Both have been severely criticized as inef-
fectual because they have conflicting goals—retribution versus rehabilitation.
Partly in response to these criticisms, a new philosophical model has arisen,
which, according to its supporters, has taken workable aspects from both older mod-
els, thrown out the unworkable, and added some concepts of its own. This new
philosophy or guiding framework is restorative justice. Restorative justice is “every
action that is primarily oriented toward justice by repairing the harm that has been
caused by the crime” and “usually means a face-to-face confrontation between vic-
tim and perpetrator, where a mutually agreeable restorative solution is proposed and
agreed upon” (Champion, 2005, p. 154).
Restorative justice is particularly popular in Canada, having received the seal of
approval from the Canadian Supreme Court, which views it as one part of a sentenc-
ing dichotomy (restorative versus punitive) that can better serve justice (Roach,
2000). The American Correctional Association (ACA) also endorsed the philosophy
of restorative justice in its policy on sentencing in 2014. The ACA policy statement
asserts that sentencing should have as a major purpose restorative justice—righting
the harm done to the victim and the community. The restorative focus should be
both process-oriented and substantively oriented, with victims or their representa-
tive included in the justice process. The sentencing procedure should address the
needs of the victims, including their need to be heard and as much as possible to be
and feel restored to wholeness.
As we see from the ACA policy statement, restorative justice should be as much
victim-driven as offender-driven. The primary defining difference between restor-
ative justice and previous models is its belief in the effectiveness of active commu-
nity participation in the corrections endeavor. Correctional theorists long have
contended that corrections cannot reintegrate the offender successfully back into the
community without the community’s active help and support (Bazemore, 2000). As
Kay Carter (2010, p. 11) put it: “The community is both a part of the problem and a
part of the solution. If many delinquency issues grow out of problems in the
1.3 Correctional Philosophy and Restorative Justice 7
1.4 Summary
The authors obviously believe that rehabilitation is possible with a thoroughly pro-
fessional approach to the business of correcting offenders’ behavior through proac-
tive casework. Many negatives are associated with counseling offenders, foremost
of which is the non-voluntary nature of the offender/counselor relationship.
However, there are also certain advantages not found in other types of client/coun-
selor relationships such as the availability of a great deal of information about the
offender, well-tested assessment tools, and the amount of control you can exercise
over offenders’ activities.
We must emphasize the usefulness of theory. Practitioners of any profession
should be fully grounded in the knowledge available to that profession. Remember,
theory is the jumping-off point for adequate practice. Without some theoretical
understanding of the phenomena with which you are working, you will be flounder-
ing in the dark, making mistakes, and possibly thwarting offenders’ chances of
becoming useful citizens.
The philosophy of restorative justice recognizes both the need to involve victims
(and their need for justice) and the offenders’ need for reformation. This process
strives to instill in both victims and victimizers the belief that they have attained
fairness and justice and, thus, there is a rehabilitative effect on the offender.
References
American Correctional Association. (2014). Policy on sentencing. Affirmed by the Delegate
Assembly, February 4, 2014 at www.aca.org
Bazemore, G. (2000). What’s ‘new’ about the balanced approach? In P. Kratkoski (Ed.),
Correctional counseling and treatment (pp. 124–155). Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press.
Bazemore, G., & Maloney, D. (1994). Rehabilitative community service: Toward restorative ser-
vice sanctions in a balanced justice system. Federal Probation, 58, 24–35.
Carter, K. (2010). Restorative justice and the balanced approach. In A. Walsh & M. Stohr (Eds.),
Correctional assessment, casework, and counseling (5th ed., pp. 10–12). Alexandria, VA:
American Correctional Association.
Champion, D. (2005). Probation, parole, and community corrections (5th ed.). Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Coates, R. (1990). Victim-offender reconciliation programs in North America. In B. Galaway
& J. Hudson (Eds.), Criminal justice, restitution, and reconciliation. Monsey, NY: Criminal
Justice Press.
Crowe, A. (1998). Restorative justice and offender rehabilitation: A meeting of the minds.
Perspectives, 22, 28–40.
Cullen, F., & Gendreau, P. (2000). Assessing correctional rehabilitation: Policy, practice, and pros-
pects. In Criminal justice 2000. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice.
Durose, M. R., Cooper, A. D., & Snyder, H. N. (2014). Recidivism of prisoners released in 30
states in 2005: Patterns from 2005 to 2010. Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Goff, D., & Owens, B. (1999). Results driven supervision. Perspectives, 23, 24–27.
Kaeble, D., & Cowhig, M. (2018). Correctional populations in the United States, 2016. Washington,
DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Latimer, J., Dowden, G., & Muise, D. (2005). The effectiveness of restorative justice practices: a
meta-analysis. The Prison Journal, 85, 127–144.
10 1 Introduction
Lauen, R. (1997). Positive approaches to corrections: Research, policy, and practice. Lanham,
MD: American Correctional Association.
Lipsey, M. W., & Cullen, F. T. (2007). The effectiveness of correctional rehabilitation: A review of
systematic reviews. Annual Review of Law and Social Science, 3, 297–320.
Marshall, W., & Serran, G. (2004). The role of the therapist in offender treatment. Psychology
Crime and Law, 10, 309–320.
Olson, S., & Dzur, A. (2004). Revisiting informal justice: restorative justice and democratic pro-
fessionalism. Law and Society Review, 38, 139–176.
Perry, J. (2002). Repairing communities through restorative justice. Lanham, MD: American
Correctional Association.
Pranis, K. (1996). Restorative justice catching on in Minnesota corrections. Overcrowded Times,
7, 1–9.
Roach, K. (2000). Changing punishment at the turn of the century: Restorative justice on the rise.
Canadian Journal of Criminology, 42, 249–280.
Shapiro, R. (1990). Is restitution legislation the chameleon of the victims’ movement? In
B. Galaway & J. Hudson (Eds.), Criminal justice, restitution, and reconciliation. Monsey, NY:
Criminal Justice Press.
Stohr, M., & Walsh, A. (2018). Corrections: From research, to policy, to practice. Thousand Oaks,
CA: Sage.
Taxman, F. (2008). No illusions: Offender and organizational change in Maryland’s proactive com-
munity supervision efforts. Criminology & Public Policy, 7, 275–302.
Walker, S. (2001). Sense and nonsense about crime and drugs: Policy guide. Belmont, CA:
Wadsworth.
Walsh, A., & Ellis, L. (2007). Criminology: An interdisciplinary approach. Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage.
Welch, M. (1996). Corrections: A critical approach. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Wilson, D., Olaghere, A., & Kimbrell, C. (2017). Effectiveness of restorative justice principles in
juvenile justice: A meta-analysis. Washington, D.C.: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention.
Wilson, J., & Herrnstein, R. (1985). Crime and human nature. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.
The Self: Principal Tool
of the Correctional Helper 2
Many tools are available to you to modify the behavior of offenders, but your own
self-concept is the most important. Correctional personnel may decline the use of
other tools, but corrections work demands the use of the self. Effective helping
behavior involves interaction between two selves. The offender’s self, almost by
definition, is deficient in some important aspects. His or her involvement in the
criminal justice system demonstrates some degree of difficulty in behaving in a
responsible manner. To compensate for the deficiencies of one-half of the
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer 11
Nature Switzerland AG 2020
A. Walsh et al., Correctional Assessment, Casework, and Counseling,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55226-8_2
12 2 The Self: Principal Tool of the Correctional Helper
interacting dyad (the offender), the other half (the correctional worker) must pos-
sess some extraordinary qualities if the relationship is to be an effective one.
Before we discuss the interviewing process, it is a good idea to examine briefly
the primary tool used in that process. The importance of self-concept in understand-
ing your behavior and that of the offenders is of the utmost importance. Your self-
concept is who and what you believe that unique individual you refer to as “me” is
all about. It is the central core of your existence, your focus of reality from which
you experience and evaluate the world around you. The self-concept is not the “real
self” (whatever that is). It is rather the picture we have of ourselves about the kind
of persons we are. Your self-concept is both the product and producer of your expe-
riences. If you are capable of giving and receiving love, if you consider yourself a
worthwhile person, if you are confident in yourself, and if you behave responsibly,
you will be able to bring positive feelings about yourself to the helping
relationship.
You have developed these ideas about yourself through a lifetime of interacting
with others and incorporating both their attitudes and feelings about you and their
evaluations and expectations of you. Thus, your self-concept is largely the product
of your experience. Since you do have a positive self-concept derived from the posi-
tive beliefs about you held by significant others, your behavior will tend to confirm
their beliefs and yours in a kind of psychological version of the “rich get richer”
spiral.
A pundit said, “What a man [or woman] thinks of him [or her] self contains his
[or her] destiny.” In this way, your self-concept produces your behavior. Now, con-
sider individuals whose experiences have resulted in poor self-evaluations, a nega-
tive self-concept. Their behavior also will tend to confirm their perceptions of
themselves derived from those unhappy experiences. If their experiences are such
that they develop negative self-concepts, they are likely to view the world as an
unfriendly place and to engage in behavior not likely to endear them to others.
Such people may feel trapped in a way of life without much hope of improve-
ment, being victims of their own self-perceptions, or “stinkin’ thinkin’,” as many
counselors refer to it. The psychological spiral now swirls in the opposite direction:
“the poor get poorer.” “I’m no good. I can’t be—nobody loves me, wants me, or
cares for me.” “Who cares anyway? Not me; they can all go to hell!” “I can’t get a
job because I’m not very smart—everyone says so.” “I’ll just get what I need by
taking it from all those suckers out there, and just let them try to stop me.” This is
the mindset of many offenders caught up in the criminal justice system, and this is
the mindset that the criminal justice helper must wrestle with and help the offender
to overcome.
However, to accomplish this task—and it is an arduous and lengthy one—your
own self-concept must be up to it. As Combs, Avila, and Purkey (1971, pp. 56–57)
so well put it:
Since new concepts of self are learned as a consequence of interactions with the helper,
effective helpers must be significant people. They cannot be non-entities. One cannot inter-
act with a shadow. The helping relationship is an active one, and a passive helper is unlikely
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Language: English
By RICHARD R. SMITH
When the sharp crack stopped echoing in his ears, he examined the
still form and discovered he'd been mistaken. The object wasn't a
weapon. It was a metal globe six inches in diameter and studded
with precious jewels. The Martian had offered it in exchange for his
life.
The windows of his apartment on the fourteenth floor were open and
a gentle breeze chilled the sweat on his face as he worked with the
knife. He had previously removed four jewels from the metal globe,
but the large ruby he'd selected this time seemed to be embedded
deeper.
The blade slipped and slashed the palm of his left hand. Cursing the
artifact and all Martians in general, he attacked the ruby furiously
and grunted with satisfaction when he dislodged it.
The red jewel rolled across the table and fell to the floor. Picking it up
gingerly as if it were a fragile thing of glass, he held it in the sunlight
and watched the myriad facets sparkle like a one-color kaleidoscope.
It was the largest jewel of all and worth a small fortune....
A sharp pain in his hand reminded him of his wound and he went to
the bathroom. After carefully washing the cut, he applied iodine and
was trying to find a bandage when....
The ruby rolled across the table and fell to the floor.
Startled, he leaped back and upset the chair. A second before, he'd
been in the bathroom and now he was at the table! Amnesia? He
couldn't remember walking back to the living room and although he
thought he'd put iodine on the cut, there was none on it that he could
see.
He went to the bathroom....
The ruby rolled across the table and fell to the floor.
He was sitting before the table again without any memory of having
left the bathroom! It had happened twice.
Taking the globe to the window, he examined it carefully and saw
that where the ruby had been lodged, there was now an opening
through the metal. When he held it at a certain angle, he saw a maze
of wiring and tiny mechanisms inside.
He had fought the Martians for two years. He had traveled across
their red deserts, crawled on the muddy bottoms of their gigantic
dead canals, walked through the remains of their ancient cities and
heard legends about the great Martian empire that had slowly
crumbled during the centuries.
He remembered the legends about Martian time machines and he
accepted the fact readily: the object in his hand was a time trap. An
ancient, intricate, scientific booby-trap!
The Martian had known he would die and had deliberately planned
his revenge. Perhaps the machine wasn't strong enough to take
anyone far into the past or future; that would explain why he hadn't
used it to escape. But it was evidently strong enough to be used as a
trap, and perhaps it had even been designed for that purpose
centuries ago. Removing the ruby had triggered it....
Ironic, he reflected, that he'd gone to so much trouble and expense
to smuggle the thing from Mars to Earth. The jewels were worth a
fortune and it had never occurred to him that the metal globe might
have some function. Actually, he had smuggled an ingenious death-
trap back to Earth with him.
He shuddered at the thought.
The ruby rolled across the table and fell to the floor.
He smiled as he picked the ruby up from the floor. He estimated that
he'd lived more than twenty years in ten-minute intervals, and
therefore the trap was not a death-trap. He'd discovered countless
ways of fighting boredom and knew he would never succumb to it
and resultant insanity. He had entered the other apartments by using
the stone ledge and breaking through the windows. In them he had
found a total of hundreds of books ... a pair of binoculars that he
used to study a multitude of new things from his window ... a
typewriter that he used to write books although there was never a
completed manuscript ... a chess set ... decks of cards ... hobbies....
There were many more possibilities that he hadn't explored yet and
he realized that the Martian had given him a valuable gift: extra
years of life.
It seemed incredible that a machine could operate continuously for
twenty years, but the ancient Martians had been expert in
constructing devices without moving parts. He knew little science,
but he could vaguely imagine a sort of "gateway" to the space-time
continuum that the removal of the ruby had opened. Perhaps during
a ten-minute period a predetermined amount of energy passed
through the "gateway" and flowed against a radioactive substance in
a way and with a force that thrust a few atoms backward in time to
the point when the energy didn't exist and that established the cycle.
With moving parts, the machine wouldn't have run continuously for
twenty years. Something would have broken down. Even without
moving parts, the machine wouldn't run forever; the materials
themselves would deteriorate sooner or later, or the energy passing
through them from the space-time continuum would gradually
disintegrate them no matter how strong they were. But for as long as
the device operated, he would live without growing old. If it ran a
hundred years, he would live a hundred years....
The ruby rolled across the table and fell to the floor.
He rubbed his aching head. He had lived approximately thirty years
at ten-minute intervals, but the headache had started and grown in
intensity during the last year and it was difficult to recall and
appreciate all the things he had done.
The ruby....
He no longer moved about the apartment, but sat in the chair during
every cycle and watched the ruby as it rolled endlessly. Memories
were like a crushing, paralyzing weight in his mind ... a weight that
grew and grew and....
The old Martian he had killed would have his revenge. He realized
the ingenious machine was much more than a gift or a death-trap. It
was a torture machine. A torture machine that would operate for
centuries; a machine that would gradually crush his mind and kill him
with the sheer weight of memories....
He screamed.