Uri Timor

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.

Balagan: Delinquency as a Result of the Lack of a Center of Norms and Consciousness

From interviews with prisoners and ex-prisoners in Israel, it emerges that their delinquency was an outcome of what is called in many languages, including Hebrew,balagan (a chaotic or messy life). The balagan is caused by a lack of moral and behavioral centers, and it is characterized by confusing and contradictory norms of criminal and noncriminal behavior. This conclusion is inconsistent with theories that explain criminality in terms of cultural perspective, but it fits the center theory and the theories of social control. The balagan was mainly expressed by contradictions between their attitudes and behavior, as well as between their positive images and criminal acts. None of the convicts and ex-convicts justified breaking the law, but they attempted to minimize their responsibility by means of justifications and excuses. This study is based on phenomenological interviews conducted with 25 prisoners and 50 former prisoners who underwent programs of rehabilitation in kibbutzim and in yeshivot in Israel.

Discourse Characteristics in the Sociolect of Repentant Criminals

Ex-criminals who are rehabilitated in Yeshivot (Jewish religious academies) for newly religious men in Israel change their language gradually from a criminal sociolect to a religious one typical of the Yeshivot; at the same time they make extensive use of diverse linguistic means to promote the change in their ideology and in their social identity. Discourse analysis of six passages from phenomenological interviews with such penitents exemplify this change in the penitents language, as well as the purposeful use the repentants make of diverse linguistic resources (semantic, grammatical, syntactic, structural and metalinguistic) to rebuild their worldview and to gain social legitimacy in their new community. These resources include extensive use of religious utterances, use of a criminal sociolect in referring to the criminal past, ellipsis, tag questions, personal pronouns, nominalization, passive voice, anaphora, idiosyncratic use of contrasts, figurative language, negative and positive connotations, intensifiers, modal utterances, and meta-language.

Typology of Intimate Partner Homicide Personal, Interpersonal, and Environmental Characteristics of Men Who Murdered Their Female Intimate Partner

Fifteen inmates from Ayalon prison, a maximum-security prison in Israel, who were convicted of murder, attempted murder, or manslaughter of their female intimate partner, have participated in a study designed to examine integrated variables—personal, interpersonal, and environmental—familial—connected with this phenomenon. Analyses of the in-depth interviews demonstrate that despite the different motivations the perpetrators displayed with regard to the murder, they share some common themes. On the basis of these themes, three primary types of female intimate partner murderers have been identified; each of them represents a personal narrative as follows: the betrayed, the abandoned, and the tyrant. The proposed typology might be used for establishing a common language among researchers, scholars, and workers in this field. It can also contribute to the existing clinical tools in terms of prediction, prevention, and treatment initiatives that currently focus on violence.

What do our clients say? Residents’ perceptions of recovery in Retorno – A Jewish therapeutic community

Residents’ perceptions of recovery in a therapeutic community (TC) have long been of interest to researchers and addiction practitioners. This study aims to continue this course of research in a TC in Israel. In particular, this study aims to present subjective perceptions of recovery of the clients in Retorno, a Jewish TC, using a qualitative, phenomenological, and retrospective study design. The participants were 21 clients, 11 juveniles, and 10 adults, who were administered an in-depth, semi-structured, individual interview. The findings cover two main themes: (a) the properties of treatment that the clients specified as significant to their recovery and (b) the expressions of change in the clients’ lives during their recovery. The findings highlight the importance of unconditional acceptance and caring during therapy, along with additional spiritual values that might challenge clients. This perspective signifies the “how to” and “how it is perceived” rather than merely the “what to do.” It represents the application of the emerging positive criminology that inspires the separation–unification vector of clients with some progress toward greater unification in the social, individual, and spiritual dimensions.

Sociolinguistic and Psycholinguistic Indications of Behavior Disorders: Analysis of a Prisoner's Discourse

Human verbal language communicates both manifest and latent messages concerning the speakers world and behavior. To understand his world and analyze his problems,1 it is important to decode the latent messages as they may hint at the root causes. The authors present a discourse analysis of a prisoners text and a semantic and morphological analysis of it. This text reflects contempt for the law and its representatives, together with a weak attachment to legitimate society, neutralization of personal responsibility, denial of guilt, and low self-esteem. Sociolinguistic and psycholinguistic analysis points toward a more profound evaluation of the perceptions and world of the speaker. It seems that he yearns for attachment, for understanding and social acceptance, and perhaps even to abandon crime. The prisoners latent feelings of helplessness and fear of humiliation may help the therapist establish a therapeutic relationship and help him change his perceptions and behavior.

Domestic Violence Against Partners According to Wife-Beaters: Construction of Lifestyle and Life Meaning:

This qualitative study examines the life stories of men who committed violent crimes against their intimate partners, for which they have served prison sentences. For the study, nine men in a rehabilitation hostel in Israel were interviewed. The study aim was to understand the psychological process that had brought the participants to behave violently towards their partners. Narrative analysis of the life stories resulted in two main themes. The first, childhood, was related to how the interviewee during his childhood perceived his personal identity and his parents. The second theme represented the adult interviewee’s worldview of violence in general and of intimate partner violence in particular. The findings revealed a subjective feeling of inferiority and lack of worth and volition during childhood, a feeling of chaos, and the absence of existential meaning. To avoid these feelings in adulthood, the participants chose a lifestyle that included the use of force and violence, which provided them with a sense of control and meaning. Discussion of the findings is based on the individual psychology theory of Adler and his followers, as well as on the existentialist orientation. According to these approaches, the study participants, who lacked a sense of positive “existential being,” developed a negative lifestyle that enabled them to feel a sense of security, value, and meaning.

The Narrative of Men Who Murder Their Partners: How Reliable Is It?

This article deals with the strategies the storyteller uses to influence the listener’s perception and thinking. It is based on qualitative research, which examined the narratives of 12 men who killed their female partners. After entering prison, the murderer attempts to salvage some part of his social image. He does this using an assortment of means in two areas: the content of the narrative and its linguistic style. In terms of content, all the storytellers present themselves as extremely positive and their wives as very negative. With respect to language, the killers use verbs that distance them from responsibility, they hedge, repeat words and phrases to persuade, and use figures of speech they expect will impress their listeners. This artificial discourse is cunningly interwoven in terms of content and story art to recreate an alternative reality of a man who is normative and whom society can accept.

Parents’ Perceptions of Their Adolescent Sons’ Recovery in a Therapeutic Community for Addicted Clients

A qualitative phenomenological study of parents of addicted male adolescents who were residents of a Jewish therapeutic community (TC) describes and interprets the parents’ perceptions of the recovery process. Deep, semistructured interviews with 14 parents provided the data. The parents’ perceptions were clustered into three main themes of meaning: (a) the process of change, (b) the experiences of family members in the course of the son’s recovery process, and (c) the parents’ perception of the treatment at Retorno. According to the parents, the admission of their sons into the TC brought notable relief to the family life, which enabled the whole family to begin a recovery process. The findings support the positive criminology perspective that emphasizes the disintegration–integration vector as significant in the recovery process. Recommendations for intervention planning are provided.

Rehabilitation of Released Prisoners in the Kibbutz: From Isolation to Segregation

Abstract The present research examines 110 released prisoners who were sent for rehabilitation to the Kibbutz Movement by the Israeli Prisoner Rehabilitation Service between 1983 and 2001. The research examines several measures of their adjustment towards normative life during and after their stay at the kibbutz. The research was based on interviews with each of the offenders adoptive families and with the released prisoners themselves. Program participants reincarceration rate was 22.7%, which is much lower than the 63% reincarceration rate in the general population of released prisoners in Israel. Findings show that the most significant predictors of successful rehabilitation were length of stay in the kibbutz, work and social integration, and adherence to kibbutz norms.