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Perceptions of sex offenders with intellectual disability: A comparison of forensic staff and the general public
Author(s) -
Steans Jennifer,
Duff Simon
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.056
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1468-3148
pISSN - 1360-2322
DOI - 10.1111/jar.12467
Subject(s) - intellectual disability , blame , psychology , framing (construction) , perception , categorization , sex offender , social psychology , clinical psychology , psychiatry , philosophy , structural engineering , epistemology , neuroscience , engineering
Background Existing literature suggests that individuals with intellectual disability are not always held accountable for their actions and forensic staff are unlikely to report their sexually harmful behaviour. Method This research explores how categorization of an offender as having intellectual disability and the framing of an offence as planned or opportunistic, impacts upon ratings of risk, blame and intent by forensic staff and the general public. The impact of pre‐existing attitudes towards sex offenders upon these ratings was also considered. Results Differences are identified between participants’ ratings when the offender is categorized as having an intellectual disability. More positive attitudes are associated with lower ratings of several factors. Conclusions Individuals with overly positive attitudes towards sex offenders could underestimate the risk posed by sex offenders with intellectual disability. These results are important to consider alongside the NHS Transforming Care Agenda.