School of Social and Political Sciences - Research Publications
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ItemNo Preview Available“What matters is what works?”: The use of evidence in correctional settings.(ICPA, 2021)In this article we consider the value of different types of ‘evidence’ from the perspectives of a correctional agency research director and a university researcher. We discuss both the feasibility and the desirability of collecting the type of evidence that has largely informed correctional policy and practice and argue that there is a need to broaden our methodological frame to address the gaps that exist in our current knowledge base and the problems that inevitably arise when trying to translate research findings into practice.
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ItemThe effectiveness of minimum non-parole period schemes for serious violent, sexual and drug offenders and evidence-based approaches to community protection, deterrence, and rehabilitation(Sentencing Advisory Council QLD, 2021)Purpose: This review presents a summary of research that is relevant to the implementation of the serious violent offences (SVO) scheme in Queensland. This scheme requires a person declared convicted of a serious violent offence1 to serve 80 per cent of their sentence (or 15 years, whichever is less) in prison before being eligible to apply for parole. Three separate but related questions are considered. The first relates to conceptualisations and stakeholder (i.e., community, victim and professional) perceptions of crime seriousness, risk, and harm - and how these influence determinations about the appropriate length of imprisonment and setting of non-parole periods. The second concerns current empirical evidence about the effectiveness of mandatory or presumptive minimum non-parole period schemes; and the final question considers what is known about the impact a range of other sentencing or programmatic approaches that might also be used to achieve community protection, deterrence, rehabilitation, punishment, and denunciation. These questions are answered with specific reference to those who have been convicted of Schedule 1 offences and who therefore may be subject to the SVO scheme, including those convicted of sexual violence, non-sexual violence, and serious drug offences.
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ItemPost-Symposium Reflections: A Panel Discussion(University of Waikato, 2021-06)A panel discussion to share and discuss reflections.
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ItemEvaluation of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Mental Health First Aid Program(WILEY, 2021-02)OBJECTIVE: This study reports findings from an uncontrolled evaluation of a course designed to educate participants in how to recognise and respond to mental health problems until professional help is received. METHODS: Utilising a mixed methods design, participants in 21 different courses, delivered across two Australian states, were invited to complete pre-, post-, and follow-up surveys and provide qualitative feedback on their training experiences. RESULTS: Participants reported feeling more confident in their capacity to respond appropriately to a person presenting with a mental health need and believed they would be more likely to provide assistance. Satisfaction was attributed to the skills and sensitivities of instructors who had lived experience of mental health concerns in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. CONCLUSION: This course holds promise in improving mental health literacy in relation to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health. Implications for public health: Few courses are available that address issues relating to the social and emotional wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People. This study illustrates how community engagement with primary health and specialist mental health services might be strengthened.
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ItemLive psychotherapy by video versus in-person: A meta-analysis of efficacy and its relationship to types and targets of treatment(WILEY, 2021-11)In-person psychotherapy (IPP) has a long and storied past, but technology advances have ushered in a new era of video-delivered psychotherapy (VDP). In this meta-analysis, pre-post changes within VDP were evaluated as were outcome differences between VDP versus IPP or other comparison groups. A literature search identified k = 56 within-group studies (N = 1681 participants) and 47 between-group studies (N = 3564). The pre-post effect size of VDP was large and highly significant, g = +0.99 95% CI [0.67-0.31]. VDP was significantly better in outcome than wait list controls (g = 0.77) but negligible in difference from IPP. Within-groups heterogeneity of effect sizes was reduced after subgrouping studies by treatment target, of which anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (each with k > 5) had effect sizes nearing 1.00. Disaggregating within-groups studies by therapy type, the effect size was 1.34 for CBT and 0.66 for non-CBT. Adjusted for possible publication bias, the overall effect size of VDP within groups was g = 0.54. In conclusion, substantial and significant improvement occurs from pre- to post-phases of VDP, this in turn differing negligibly from IPP treatment outcome. The VDP improvement is most pronounced when CBT is used, and when anxiety, depression, or PTSD are targeted, and it remains strong though attenuated by publication bias. Clinically, therapy is no less efficacious when delivered via videoconferencing than in-person, with efficacy being most pronounced in CBT for affective disorders. Live psychotherapy by video emerges not only as a popular and convenient choice but also one that is now upheld by meta-analytic evidence.
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ItemDo Risk Assessments Play a Role in the Enduring ‘Color Line’?(ICPA, 2020)This paper presents some of the arguments that have been put forward to suggest that current risk assessments are inherently biased and disproportionally disadvantage people of color in Western correctional systems. We suggest that this is a key area of concern for all correctional professionals and that new methods of risk assessment and approaches to training are needed. In our view, without this people of color will continue to be misclassified, over-assessed, placed in the wrong rehabilitation pathways, imprisoned and/or supervised longer than needed, and consequently remaining overrepresented in the correctional system.
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