Natti Ronel

Risk and Resilience The Family Experience of Adolescents With an Addicted Parent

The family relationships of adolescents brought up by an addicted parent were studied in a qualitative research. The authors interviewed 19 adolescents, all of whom had a parent either actively addicted to drugs or else recovering addicts. The participants were assigned to one of two groups based on the degree to which they maintained normative lives or descended into addiction. It was found that the relative strength of the adolescents within the triad of forces (mother, father, self) had great significance for their development. Younger siblings awakened a desire to protect them from a life of addiction. The extended family was also found to have a potential to influence, in keeping with the significance the young people attributed to these relatives. The results indicate a definition, the first of its kind, of subjective risk and protective factors representing subjective perceptions of the reality of the lives of the participants.

A Different Perspective: Introducing Positive Criminology:

Positive criminology is a new conceptual perspective of criminology, encompassing several theories and models. Positive criminology refers to a focus on individuals’ encounters with forces and influences that are experienced as positive, which distance them from deviance and crime, whether by means of formal and informal therapy programs and interventions, such as self-help groups; through emphasis of positive social elements, such as exposure to goodness, social acceptance, and reintegrative shaming; or based on positive personal traits, such as resilience and coherence. The perspective of positive criminology broadens that of traditional criminology, which focuses mainly on understanding the factors and processes that lead individuals and groups to what is defined as deviant and criminal behavior. Positive criminology is implemented in treatment and rehabilitation of individuals and groups that have demonstrated deviant and criminal behavior, by emphasizing positive experiences that may potentially prevent or discourage continued criminal behavior. Positive criminology is also expressed in prevention based on a positive approach.

When good overcomes bad: The impact of volunteers on those they help

This qualitative study examines the impact of a personal encounter with perceived goodness, as represented by volunteers who are perceived as altruistic by those they help. It focuses on the encounter between at-risk street youths and lay volunteers in a mobile outreach service. The findings reveal that the street youths perceived the volunteers as representing pure altruism, and this stimulated several positive processes. Meeting the volunteers raised their awareness of giving without expecting a reward, which sharply contradicts their view of the world as a battlefield. Consequently, they understood and partially internalized the idea of non-material gratification. In some cases, the example set by the volunteers inspired the young people to consider volunteering themselves. Finally, they were able to generalize the altruistic image to the entire service and overcome their initial objections to a service run by the establishment. The proposed explanation, related to positive psychology, refers to the contrast between the example of the volunteers and the self centeredness of the street youths, which shifted slightly as a result.

The Practice of Positive Criminology: A Vipassana Course in Prison

Positive criminology is a new term for a perspective associated with theories and models that relate to socially inclusive, positively experienced influences that assist individuals in desisting or refraining from criminal and deviant behavior. A qualitative phenomenological study of prisoners who were in recovery from substance dependency and who participated in a Vipassana course in a rehabilitative prison introduces features of positive criminology. A total of 22 male prisoners participated in a 10-day Vipassana course run by volunteers in prison. Deep interviews were conducted with participants before, immediately after, and 3 to 4 months after the course. The findings describe components of positive criminology that had meaningful impact on the prisoners in rehabilitation: perceived goodness, positive relationship with the prison staff, positive social atmosphere, and overcoming an ordeal. Implications for practice and further research are outlined.

When parents lay their children to rest: Between anger and forgiveness

A hermeneutic-phenomenological study of 13 bereaved parents of fallen soldiers or victims of terrorism describes their grief, anger, and forgiveness in relation to their struggle with personal loss. The findings indicate anger as a major variable among participants, aroused by three sources: (i) the circumstances of the loss; (ii) the institutionalized response to the loss; and (iii) a certain policy and its makers. A salient finding is that the ‘enemy,’ the target of the most anger, was never the one who actually killed their son, but a political leader who participants perceived to be responsible for the loss. Forgiveness was scarcely relevant to participants. A proposed explanation focuses on the meaning of the respective representations of the dead child in the participants’ inner and social worlds, and their lack of readiness for the necessary transformation of that representation. Recommendations include the institutionalized responses that may benefit the parents personally and assist them in reaching forgiveness and reconciliation with their defined enemy.

Positive Criminology in Practice

The discourse regarding offender rehabilitation has been criticized by various scholars who have claimed that reducing negative causes and managing risk will not automatically prompt positive human development and elements that are associated with desistance. Positive criminology is an innovative concept that challenges the common preoccupation with negative elements, by placing emphasis on human encounters and forces of inclusion that are experienced positively by target individuals and that can promote crime desistance. However, as the concept is relatively new, there are still no guiding principles for the practice of positive criminology that could direct research and the criminal justice system. This article attempts to fill that gap by providing principles that could be practiced by criminal justice personnel and examples of different interventions that reflect positive criminology. The article also provides ideological explanations for adopting the concept of positive criminology in practice.

Criminal Behavior, Criminal Mind Being Caught in a “Criminal Spin”

The innovative theory of the “criminal spin” presents a phenomenological description and interpretation of criminal conduct. The theory indicates a process that occurs in different phases of criminality, involving an escalation of criminal activity, thinking, and emotions that run beyond self-control, sometimes contrary to initial decision. Its phenomenology indicates an interaction between individual, group, and situation and a growing self-centeredness with two leading motives: “I can” and “I must.” The first denotes a perceived legitimacy and capability to perform criminal conduct. The second reflects an existential threat and a belief that it must be removed by any action. These motives may operate in an acute or a chronic phase, within individuals, groups, or societies. The spin is a detectable process with known characteristics and prognosis. Implications for intervention are outlined.

Positive criminology and imprisoned sex offenders: Demonstration of a way out from a criminal spin through acceptance relationships

Abstract The purpose of this qualitative research was to examine the change process experienced by imprisoned sex offenders during incarceration from the standpoint of emerging positive criminology perspective. The participants were 38 males incarcerated in two prisons in Israel who had been convicted of various sexual offences. The participants underwent individual in-depth, face-to-face interviews, lasting several hours each. Initially, the findings suggested a tendency for offences to escalate over time, referred to as a “criminal spin”, which can be stopped only by external intervention. Most of the participants also reported that they experienced positive changes during the current imprisonment, associated with broad support received from various sources. This suggests a possible way out of the criminal spin by exposing offenders to the human and social acceptance of meaningful agents, thus supporting the positive criminology perspective. In addition to their theoretical contribution, the findings have practical implications for the assessment, treatment and rehabilitation of sex offenders.

Growing-up with a substance-dependent parent: development of subjective risk and protective factors.

A qualitative phenomenological study of high-risk adolescents, who are children of substance-dependent parents, explored the presence of subjective risk and protective factors. Nineteen adolescents were interviewed, all of whom had a father or both parents either actively dependent on psychoactive substances or recovering from substance dependence. The participants were assigned to one of two groups, based on the degree to which they maintained normative lives or had misused substances themselves. It was found that certain perceptions of the participants, concerning themselves and their parents, served as either subjective risk or protective factors, respectively. Implications for the treatment of this population are outlined.

Can a 12-Step Program Work in Methadone Maintenance Treatment?

Three consecutive, professionally led (as opposed to self-help) groups following the 12-step program (TSP) were integrated into a methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) program that included 32 heroin-addicted individuals in recovery. This report describes our experience in meeting the challenges that arose and our conclusions regarding the therapeutic potential of this integration. A professional therapeutic staff guided the groups. In-depth interviews of 10 participants and the reflections of the group leaders provided data for learning about the groups’ experience. Initially the participants rejected the concepts of Step 1, powerlessness and unmanageability of life. The assimilation of Step 4 (defining character defect) also aroused some resistance. The participants eventually adopted the pragmatic aspects of TSP, including its terminology. The establishment of a common language of recovery helped to create group coherence and a sense of belonging, and helped to meet the needs of those who felt stigmatized by both the nonaddicted and addicted population undergoing nonmethadone recovery. TSP could be adapted to various aspects of daily life, produced a sense of self-efficacy, and stimulated motivation for change. Therapeutic implications are discussed.