Characteristics of Female Offenders

Characteristics of Female Offenders

Leona Helmsley, Martha Stewart, Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme, Susan Smith, and Andrea Yates are some of the famous, or infamous, females who have recently spent time in correctional forensic treatment settings. These women were media “favorites,” and while their crimes were certainly worthy of the attention, what is more telling and compelling is that these women exhibited many common features shared by female offenders. When considering what these and other female offenders have in common, it is obvious that such features have implications for treatment approaches, the treatment itself, and the measurement of treatment success.

To prepare for this assignment:

•             Review the article “Gendered Pathways: A Quantitative Investigation of Women Probationers’ Paths to Incarceration” in this week’s Learning Resources. Pay particular attention to common features that are relevant to female offenders, in general. https://go.openathens.net/redirector/waldenu.edu?url=https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0093854809334076

•             Review the article “The Natural History of Conduct Disorder Symptoms in Female Inmates: On the Predictive Utility of the Syndrome in Severely Antisocial Women” in this week’s Learning Resources. Focus on gender differences related to the etiology of antisocial behavior and consider how these differences would affect treatment approaches. Burnette, M. L., & Newman, D. L. (2005).

•             The natural history of conduct disorder symptoms in female inmates: On the predictive utility of the syndrome in severely antisocial women

•             Consider the features common to female offenders and think about how these features affect treatment approaches and their treatment outcomes.

•             Select at least two of the features common to female offenders to use for this Application Assignment.

•             Think about the implications of these specific features when selecting treatment approaches and treatment outcomes that might be appropriate and effective for female offenders. Consider how these features would affect treatment itself.

The assignment (1–2 pages):

•             Identify and briefly describe the two features common to female offenders that you selected for this Application Assignment.

•             Explain how and why each of these features is common among female offenders.

•             Explain the implications of each feature on treatment approaches and treatment outcomes for female offenders. Be specific and provide examples.

Support your Assignment with specific references to all resources used in its preparation. You are asked to provide a reference list only for those resources not included in the Learning Resources for this course.