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    Stages of change profiles of offenders : exploring offenders' motivation to work on their offending problems : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2017) Yong, Abigail Dawn
    Research has highlighted the importance of the stages of change (SoC) model (Prochaska, DiClemente, & Norcross, 1992) in assessing offenders’ motivation to work on their offending problems and as a guiding framework for selecting interventions. This thesis investigated the stages of change profiles in a group of general male offenders (N = 481) before and after a Short Motivational Programme (SMP), which is a combination of motivational interviewing and cognitive behavioural material. For the first aim, distinct homogenous stage profiles that reflected the stages of change were generated by subjecting offenders’ responses on the University of Rhode Island Change Assessment Scale (URICA; McConnaughy, DiClemente, Prochaska, & Velicer, 1989; McConnaughy, Prochaska, & Velicer, 1983) to hierarchical agglomerative cluster analysis. At pre-SMP, the Ambivalent, Non-Reflective Action, Precontemplation, Preparticipation and Participation profiles were generated. At post-SMP, the same profiles were generated with the exception of the Non-Reflective Action profile. These stage profiles were consistent with profiles elicited in previous studies, and mapped well onto the SoC model. The majority of offenders were in the precontemplation stage (represented by the Ambivalent, Non-Reflective Action and Precontemplation profiles), whereas a smaller proportion were in the preparation (represented by the Preparticipation profile) and action stages (represented by the Participation profile). For the second aim, stage profiles obtained at pre- and post-SMP were then used to investigate stage movement following the SMP, by constructing a stage-transition matrix. There was evidence for offenders with different stage profiles showing different responses to the SMP, whereby a comparatively larger proportion of offenders with the Non-Reflective Action, Preparticipation and Participation profiles appeared to continue working on their offending problems or progressed to a more highly-motivated stage, compared to offenders with the Ambivalent and Precontemplation profiles. These findings indicated that there is a need for a more flexible approach to motivational interviewing to more effectively facilitate offenders’ motivation to work on their offending problems. Men with the Ambivalent and Precontemplation profiles may require further help to resolve their ambivalence towards changing, before cognitive behavioural content is introduced. For the third aim, stage profiles at pre- and post-SMP, and stage movements were examined as predictors of recidivism in three separate logistic regression analyses, controlling for salient demographic and risk variables. Men with profiles representing the precontemplation stage were less likely to reoffend compared to men with the Preparticipation profile. This study also found that men who remained in the precontemplation stage were less likely to reoffend than those who remained in the preparation and action stages. These results suggested that men with the Preparticipation profile (which represents the preparation stage) may still be experiencing some ambivalence towards changing their behaviour, thus, impacting on their readiness to change their offending behaviour. It also raised the question on whether men with the Participation profile (which represents the action stage) may be more externally motivated to change their behaviour resulting in less lasting change upon the completion of their sentences. These findings contributed to a more in-depth understanding of offenders’ stages of change, and demonstrated that these stages have important clinical implications in guiding assessment of offenders’ motivation to work on their offending problems, and tailoring rehabilitation programmes to increase treatment responsivity and improve outcomes.
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    The efficacy of motivational interviewing with offenders : an outcome and process evaluation : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2008) Austin, Kevin Paul
    This research comprised an evaluation of a motivational interviewing programme, the Short Motivational Programme (SMP), delivered by the Department of Corrections and adapted for use with incarcerated offenders. The evaluation consisted of two components: outcome and process. Outcome Results indicated that offenders' motivation to change significantly increased from pre to post the SMP (eta squared =.19, p<.05), and a sub-group of offenders demonstrated that motivation to change was maintained at follow-up. This result, given the sample's risk of recidivism demographic, provided evidence for the SMP's efficacy with high risk offenders. Process On a measure of motivational interviewing skills, psychologists demonstrated full competence only in the use of direction, although global clinician ratings, percent open questions, evocation, collaboration, autonomy and empathy approached competence. Other than, "rolling with resistance", offenders reported strongly experiencing motivational interviewing principles during the SMP. Lastly, offenders who experienced the motivational interviewing principles to the greater extent did not demonstrate any greater increases in motivation to change from pre to post the SMP and at follow-up. These findings are discussed and recommendations are made for further research.
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    The process of motivational interviewing with offenders : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2012) Austin, Kevin Paul
    Motivational interviewing (MI) is a form of client-centred psychotherapy that resolves ambivalence and elicits motivation to change problem behaviours (Miller & Rollnick, 2009). An emerging theory suggests that MI works through the combination of a relational component and the goal directed application of MI methods to evoke and reinforce change talk (Miller & Rose, 2009). A process study was conducted on an adaptation of MI for offenders, the Short Motivational Programme (SMP). The SMP combines MI and cognitive behavioural content across five sessions to enhance motivation for change among medium risk offenders (Devereux, 2009). A single-case design and descriptive statistics were employed and supplemented with inferential statistics. The MI Skills Code 2.1 (Miller, Moyers, Ernst, & Amrhein, 2008) was used to rate the language of 12 facilitators and 26 offenders during 98 video-recorded SMP sessions. There was some evidence that facilitators were less able to use specific MI methods during sessions that included cognitive behavioural content. Offenders’ ambivalence about changing offending behaviour was most pronounced during sessions that included cognitive behavioural content. Offenders’ change and committing change talk was highest during sessions without cognitive behavioural content. Offenders who completed the SMP with more commitment to change demonstrated less ambivalence during earlier sessions. The relational component of MI appeared to be related to whether offenders completed the SMP. There was some evidence to support a relationship between the use of MI consistent methods and offender change talk. The use of MI inconsistent methods and a lack of MI consistent methods were related to ambivalence about changing criminal behaviour and premature exit from the SMP. These results suggested that facilitators should judiciously avoid the use of MI inconsistent methods and strategically employ MI consistent methods to reduce offenders’ ambivalence about change. The integration of cognitive behavioural content and MI needs to be carefully considered in reference to the aim of each session, the subsequent session, and the programme’s overall goal.