Guidelines for Assessment and Treatment

Abstract

What can be done to prevent an identified offender from repeating his sexual assaults? Incarceration is, in and of itself, insufficient to alter those personality defects that have led to his committing such an offense. Therefore, in addition to security safeguards, we must also turn to the medical and behavioral sciences for help in remedying those psychological handicaps in the offender that lead him, under certain stressful situations, to jeopardize the safety of others. Any efforts at rehabilitation must take into consideration four basic issues: (1) the client—whom are you going to treat? (2) the setting—where are you going to treat him? (3) the modality—how are you going to treat him? and (4) the outcome—how are you going to measure response to treatment and determine when the offender is rehabilitated?