Assessment of offense-related attitudes and emotions in offenders

Abstract

Forensic psychologists are asked more and more often to report on the attitudes an offender has concerning the offense for which he has been incarcerated. An overview of research on this issue is reported, starting from a description of the process of responsibility attribution. Empirical research on how offenders attribute responsibility is summarized, and the link between responsibility attribution and potential consequent emotions (e.g., guilt, shame, anger) is described, using the componential theory of emotion as a framework. Finally, both questionnaire and interview methods are described that can aid in the assessment of these offense-related attitudes.