Forensic psychologists Kevin Sammut Henwood and Chantal Avellino tell Kim Dalli that changing the way an offender thinks is the key turning point.

Every day, forensic psychologists Kevin Sammut Henwood and Chantal Avellino meet a wide variety of clients in their clinic at the Probation and Parole Department, ranging from drug addicts to sex offenders. And their aim isn’t to “cure” them.

“There is no cure because criminal behaviour is not an illness,” Dr Sammut Henwood states.

“But we can help them control their behaviour and change their thought processes through cognitive behavioural therapy.”

People generally learn to control their behaviour through the process of socialisation – through agents such as the family, school or religious institutions.

“We’ve all learnt to control our most primitive urges, from simply going to the bathroom to engaging in sexual activity. And that’s what we try to do when it comes to sex offenders, for example – we help them control their behaviours, fantasies and thoughts, as well as guiding them towards engaging in healthy relationships.”

Interestingly, throughout the course of our interview, the comparison of offenders to children is frequently drawn, even though most of the clients are males aged between 25 and 30, reflecting the offenders placed under a probation order.

The forensic psychologists ensure that the care plan is drafted through a collaborative approach with the offenders.

“In a way they behave similarly to children,” Dr Avellino says. “If a child is being told: ‘You have to do this or you have to do that’, the chances are they’re more likely to play up. In general, our clients tend to be very oppositional.”

Dr Sammut Henwood points out that the core principle is that behaviour repeats itself because it is being reinforced.

Taking property offences as an example, he explains that the immediate reinforcement for a thief who stole a wallet is the automatic financial reward.

There is no cure because criminal behaviour is not an illness

Moreover, if the person is incompetent in other areas, the fact that he is a “good pickpocket” may give him a sense of identity and boost his self-esteem.

The forensic psychologists also work towards challenging an offender’s justification process.

“Once I had a sex offender tell me that he ‘had to’ because the minor wouldn’t leave him alone. It’s almost as if he did so to shut her up,” Dr Avellino says. “Or they might tell me: ‘I enjoyed it when I was young, so he must enjoy it too’.”

The problem often lies in the offender’s way of life and the people he has surrounded himself with – and the problem, predictably, germinates in childhood.

“We can often identify patterns, such as neglect in their family environment,” Dr Sammut Henwood explains.

“They’re nearly all victimised and they tend to be ostracised. They can be bullies or bullied. Obviously, the chances of being labelled a ‘problem child’ increase. And once you’re labelled as such, your options automatically decrease.

“People tend to suffer from confirmatory biases, meaning that if someone has labelled me a problem child, I will look for evidence to prove that I am a problem child. And I will identify and surround myself with other problem children.”

These children go on to grow up, become parents and replicate the same destructive behaviour with their children, forming a vicious cycle.

Change is difficult – and the more time a person spends behind bars, the more likely it is for him to become institutionalised, Dr Avellino says. Although the environment in prison is not a pleasant one, the correctional facility offers shelter, free access to services such as doctors and a rigid structure. Being faced with finding work, a place to live and having to manage one’s own money are factors which emerging inmates find it difficult to adjust to.

There are also problems with expectations, Dr Sammut Henwood adds. “It’s almost as if they feel society owes them a problem-free existence now that they’ve decided to behave. Like children, basically – ‘I’ve been given a punishment, I’ve done my time, now remove my punishment’.

“Obviously life doesn’t work like that.”

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) works towards changing the way a person thinks about themselves, about society and about life.

According to studies, CBT work has the potential to reduce reoffending by 25 per cent.

“Every offence causes the states thousands of euros,” Dr Sammut Henwood says.

“Managing to reduce that cost by 25 per cent is very significant. And the value of lessening the number of victims is absolutely priceless.”