NCJ Number
82541
Journal
Journal of Offender Counseling Services and Rehabilitation Volume: 5 Issue: 3 and 4 Dated: (Spring/Summer 1981) Pages: 99-104
Date Published
1982
Length
6 pages
Annotation
In recent years, court-ordered therapy for incest offenders has become a frequent alternative to incarceration. This paper asks whether court-ordered therapy can produce as much attitude change as voluntary participation.
Abstract
A self-report questionnaire study was conducted among participants in a therapy program for incest offenders to compare attributions of responsibility among court-ordered and voluntary participants. The results show that court-ordered offenders were significantly more likely than voluntary offenders to take personal responsibility for their behavior. The paper discusses the possible interpretations of this finding and suggests that more behavioral measures are needed in order to ascertain the validity of the self-reports. (Author abstract)