A forensic-psychiatric study of sexual offenders in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Valença, Alexandre Martins; Meyer, Leonardo Fernandez; Freire, Rafael C.; Mendlowicz, Mauro V.; Nardi, Antônio Egídio

doi:10.1016/j.jflm.2015.01.003

Cited by 17 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 43 publications

(26 reference statements)

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“…Impulsive behavior and anger management issues, as well as a lack of social abilities, were also cited as important factors by Valenc¸a et al 22,33,34 This is in agreement with our findings, particularly in regard to the risk of new violent behavior, and might warrant the adoption of widespread strategies to reduce this risk factor. Social and environmental factors were also found to have a strong correlation, particularly drug addiction, a personal history of abuse, and lack of family support.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…These data corroborate previous findings. [20][21][22]24,26,30,33,34 Mecler 1,2 found similar results in an analysis of dangerousness cessation examinations. As was the case in our study, that investigator found that important factors had been left out of a large number of dangerousness cessation reports, such as personal history and criminal background, as well as the nature of the offenses.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 73%

“…The items that stood out were clinical (lack of insight, negative attitudes, signs of active mental illness, and unresponsiveness to treatment), behavioral (impulsiveness, plans that lack feasibility), and social (exposure to destabilizing factors, lack of personal support, and presence of stress). Studies conducted by Valenc¸a et al 22,33,34 focused on the relationship between sets of factors and violent behavior. Their findings concur with ours in that there is an important relationship between clinical factors and violent behavior, especially the following: presence of productive symptoms, relapses, lack of insight, and cognitive distortions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is all the more deserving of criticism when we consider the large number of studies showing the importance of these factors to assess risk of violence. 20,23,24,26,29,30,34 Penal law in Brazil has evolved along the lines of what is termed the ''pathologization'' of criminal behavior, This bolstered current progress in the study and understanding of criminal acts as a medical phenomenon, which in turn facilitated the identification of associations between certain criminal behavior and mental illness. 2,7,9 The judicial concept of dangerousness is currently viewed to have a scientific basis and is the subject of medicolegal research.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is solid evidence in scientific studies, including systematic reviews and meta-analyses, that proves that mental illness is far from being the most important factor in assessing risk of violence, and may not even be an isolated factor. 1,20,21,28,30,33,34,37 Bonta et al 30 conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the main predictors of criminal recidivism in individuals with and without mental illness. A total of 64 studies with 74 predictors were analyzed.…”

Section: 36mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Cessation of dangerousness status: an analysis of 224 reports from the Instituto de Perícias Heitor Carrilho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Oliveira

Valença

Moraes

et al. 2016

Rev. Bras. Psiquiatr.

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Objectives: To evaluate factors related to dangerousness cessation at the end of involuntary commitment based on an analysis of expert reports. In light of the current legal requirement of dangerousness cessation as a pre-requisite for prison or internment release of individuals subjected to the safety measure, we sought elements to reflect on the practice of expert examiners in charge of making this decision. Methods: The authors revised 224 expert psychiatric dangerousness cessation reports released 2011 through 2014 and collected data for a statistical analysis. Results: The following variables were associated with positive risk cessation assessments: no inadequate behavior (according to the assistant professionals), no productive psychotic symptoms, no negative symptoms, presence of insight, presence of a support network, and no psychoactive substance abuse. The following variables were associated with negative dangerousness cessation decisions: early onset of malfunction, lack of insight, negative attitudes, active signs of major mental illness, presence of impulsiveness, poor response to treatment, presence of plans lacking feasibility, exposure to destabilizing factors, lack of personal support, and presence of stress. Conclusions: In this study we were able to identify factors associated with dangerousness in a sample of expert reports. The knowledge of factors linked to a higher risk of recidivism in illegal activities or violent behavior is crucial for decision-making regarding the release of offenders after their legally established period of involuntary commitment.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%