Alcohol use and negative affect in the offence cycle.
BACKGROUND
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.
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.
Day
Andrew
A
Forensic and Applied Psychology Research Group, University of South Australia, Adelaide, 5000, Australia.
Howells
Kevin
K
Heseltine
Karen
K
Casey
Sharon
S
D000435:Alcoholic Intoxication / Q000150:complications* / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology; D015984:Causality; D003415:Crime / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D012046:Rehabilitation; D014754:Violence / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology