Citation

Day A, Howells K, Heseltine K, Casey S. Crim. Behav. Ment. Health 2003; 13(1): 45-58.

Affiliation

Forensic and Applied Psychology Research Group, University of South Australia, Adelaide, 5000, Australia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2003, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

14624271

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: It is commonly acknowledged that, for many offenders, alcohol use is strongly associated with criminal behaviour. The belief held by many professionals that the two phenomena are associated, probably in a causal way, has led to the inclusion of alcohol use as a 'criminogenic need' in many settings where rehabilitation programmes are used to reduce recidivism. However, the mechanisms and pathways involved in the alcohol crime link remain poorly understood. ARGUMENT AND CONCLUSION: This paper reviews the literature relating to alcohol offending links and draws some inferences about the role of alcohol use as a criminogenic need in offender rehabilitation. It is proposed that the bi-directional relationship between alcohol use and negative affective states is important in understanding the offence cycle, and that deficits in self-regulation not only characterize both alcohol misuse and negative affect but are also implicated in the offending behaviour itself.

Language: en