Treatment of Sex Offenders

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P. Lussier
refers to someone voluntarily giving up something (e.g., a right, a claim, a legal
proceeding). The English term is more behavioral-focused as it implies the termination
of a particular behavior, whereas the original French term is focused on a particular
decision taken by someone. Whether desistance from offending refers to the
decision to stop offending or to a behavioral change implying the termination of
offending is an important distinction at the core of much debate between criminologists.
Indeed, someone may take the decision to change a particular bad habit, due to
certain contingencies, will occasionally repeat this habit for a certain period of time
before completely ending this habit. Some researchers have focused their attention
to desistance of offending as the termination of offending and this line of work has
now been referred to the study of desistance as an event. For others, desistance is a
process that starts with the decision to stop offending, but this process can take some
time and involve lapses and relapses until complete termination. Among scholars,
the debates surrounding the conceptualization of desistance have been characterized
by two distinct approaches: (a) those who describe desistance as an event (i.e., to
cease offending altogether) and (b) those who define desistance as a process (i.e., a
decision to stop offending until complete termination of the behavior) (Table 13.1 ).
Desistance from Crime as an Event
According to several scholars, desistance is conceptualized as an event involving
the relatively abrupt termination of offending. From this standpoint, therefore,
desistance is relatively sudden. In the criminal career literature, for example, the
term desistance has often been alluded to a burnout representing a key moment in
someone life course (Soothill, Fitzpatrick, & Francis, 2013 ). In the field of correctional
psychology , desistance from crime is typically perceived as an event
where treatment and intervention play a key role. More specifically, correctional
programming, case management, treatment programs and therapeutic interventions
aiming to help offenders is built around the idea that desistance is an event.
Table 13.1 Definitions of desistance from crime
Conceptualization Description Focus Measure Measuring issues
Desistance
as an event
Desistance
as a process
Desistance is
sudden and
abrupt
Desistance is
gradual and
may involves
a series of
lapses and
relapses
Identification of the
factors/processes
associated with the
termination of
offending
Understanding the
transition from
offending to
non-offending
Absence of
reoffending
Deceleration of
offending until
termination
Crime switching
and intermittency of
offending over time
Access to repeated
measurements of
crime/delinquency
over long time
periods to capture
the dynamic process