Carmen Gress

... CARMEN LZ GRESS Pacific Psychological Assessment Corporation, Victoria, BC, Canada ... Habituation Habituation is the 'decrease in responsiveness to a stimulus when that stimulus is presented repeatedly or for a prolonged time' (Aoyama and McSweeney, 2000, p. 79). ...

Affinity is a computerized assessment tool that combines viewing time and self-report measures of sexual interest. The present study was designed to assess the diagnostic properties of Affinity with respect to sexual interest in prepubescent children. Reliability of both self-report and viewing time components was estimated to be high. The group profile of a sample of pedophilic adult male child molesters (n = 42, all of whom admitted their offenses) differed from the group profiles of male community controls (n = 95) and male nonsexual offenders (n = 27), respectively. More specifically, both ratings and viewing times for images showing small children or prejuvenile children were significantly higher within the child molester sample than in either of the other two groups, attesting to the validity of the measures. Overall classification accuracy, however, was mediocre: A multivariate classification routine yielded 50% sensitivity for child molester status at the cost of 13% false positives. The implications for forensic use of Affinity are discussed.

... Glasgow, DV, Osborne, A., & Croxen, J. (2003). An assessment tool for investigating paedophile sexual interest using viewing time: An application of single case methodology. British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 31, 96–102. 194 D. Richard Laws and Carmen LZ Gress ...

Much has been said about risk assessment and risk prediction of sexual recidivism, but few studies have examined the risk management of high-risk sex offenders returning to the community. The current study explores the impact of an intensive supervision program in the province of British Columbia, Canada. A quasi-experimental design was implemented to determine the impact of the program on

ABSTRACT Purpose A successful community re-entry is a step toward desistance from sex offending. The re-entry phase is critical because it can trigger dynamic risk factors that can lead to a re-offense. In that context, community risk management is seen as pivotal to moderate the impact of community re-entry and associated stressors. The current study, therefore, examines the dynamic factors associated with a successful community re-entry, taking into account the type of community supervision offenders were subjected to. Methodology This prospective longitudinal study is based on a quasi-experimental research design where offenders (n = 169) were subjected to different types of community supervision (intensive supervision versus regular probation services). Community re-entry outcomes were assessed through the presence of technical violations and/or a new criminal offence. Findings Cox proportional hazards showed that offenders with negative community re-entry outcomes were younger, at-risk of sexual violence, under intensive community supervision, and had more negative social influences and self-regulation deficits. Of importance, intensive community supervision significantly moderated the impact of negative social influences but negatively impacted those with self-regulation deficits. Conclusions The study provides evidence that dynamic risk factors are important during re-entry and may operate differently under different supervisory conditions.

We conducted a meta-review of the computer supported collaborative learning (CSCL) literature. This literature included a rich array of methodologies, theoretical and operational definitions, and collaborative models. However, the literature lacked an ...