ABSTRACT

Violent recidivism among people supervised as probationers and/or parolees in the community is a significant concern. Extant research suggests that the best way to examine violence is to delineate violence into two types: reactive and proactive. We recruited and interviewed 98 probationers in a large US east-coast metropolitan area to test the association between offenders with/without psychiatric disorders and reactive/proactive violent recidivism. The sample was equally divided between probationers/parolees with/without psychiatric disorders and the two groups were characteristically comparable at baseline. We collected recidivism data 45-days following the initial interview and used a longitudinal design to examine the association between violent recidivism-type (reactive/proactive violence) and probationer/parolee type (with/without severe psychiatric disorder). Probationers/parolees with a psychiatric disorder who recidivated violently were more likely to engage in reactive violence, whereas those without a psychiatric disorder who recidivated violently were more likely to engage in proactive violence. While people with psychiatric disorders are rarely violent, when they do act violently their violence appears to be more reactive and impulsive. This aligns with prior research about psychiatric symptoms as triggers for violent reactions. Findings may prove useful for correctional staff and treatment-providers who are tasked to manage people with psychiatric disorders in the community.

摘要

社区中作为缓刑犯和/或假释犯受到监管的人中的暴力累犯是一个重大问题。现有研究表明，检查暴力的最佳方法是将暴力分为两种类型：反应性暴力和主动性暴力。我们在美国东海岸一个大都市区招募并采访了 98 名缓刑犯，以测试患有/不患有精神疾病的罪犯与反应性/主动性暴力累犯之间的关联。样本在患有/不患有精神疾病的缓刑犯/假释犯之间平均分配，两组在基线上具有可比性。我们在初次访谈后 45 天收集了累犯数据，并使用纵向设计来检查暴力累犯类型（反应性/主动暴力）与缓刑犯/假释犯类型（有/没有严重精神障碍）之间的关联。患有精神疾病且再次施暴的缓刑犯/假释犯更有可能实施反应性暴力，而那些没有精神疾病且再次实施暴力的缓刑犯/假释犯则更有可能实施主动暴力。虽然患有精神疾病的人很少有暴力行为，但当他们确实采取暴力行为时，他们的暴力行为似乎更加反应性和冲动。这与之前关于精神症状作为暴力反应触发因素的研究是一致的。