Working Together Conference 26–28 November 2007 Breaking Through the Bars Breaking Through the Bars – Breaking Through the Bars – The Importance of Early The Importance of Early Intervention with Child Offenders Intervention with Child Offenders Nicola Atwool Principal Advisor
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Breaking through the bars - The importance of early intervention with child offenders - Nicola Atwool (Office of Children's Commissioner)
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Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Breaking Through the Bars –Breaking Through the Bars –The Importance of Early The Importance of Early Intervention with Child Intervention with Child
OffendersOffenders
Nicola Atwool
Principal Advisor
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
OverviewOverview
• Introduction
• Child offenders - characteristics
• Current response to child offending
• Alternate explanation based on attachment
• Effective intervention – an Integrated Framework
With PermissionTaonga Education Centre
Photographs Used
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Characteristics of Characteristics of child offenderschild offenders
• A small but distinct group
• “From kohanga or kindy on he has defied adults, lied, stolen maybe set fires, hit other children, is cruel to animals, verbally abuses all who frustrate him, bullies, intimidates peers, siblings and as we heard recently teachers and other adults as well.” (Professor John Werry)
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Red FlagsRed Flags
• History of serious antisocial acts
• Regular use of substances
• Hyperactivity and impulsivity
• History of aggression
• Being male
(Kaye McLaren, 2007)
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Risk Factors – FamilyRisk Factors – Family
• Socioeconomic adversity
• Parental change and conflict
• Lack of supervision
• Lack of warmth and affection
• Harsh discipline and abuse
• Parental criminal/antisocial behaviour, substance abuse, young mother,unemployment
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
• When faced with threat respond with affect and cognition
• Neural integration is promoted
• Child achieves adaptive balance
• Primary strategy in new situations is mastery
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
AvoidantAvoidant• Develops in the context of unresponsive and
rejecting relationship
• Self is perceived as unworthy
• Others are unavailable and hurtful
• Environment is threatening
• Self reliant from an early age
• Affective responses deactivated and over-regulated
• Cognitive strategies are amplified
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
AvoidantAvoidant
• Dominant approach is pragmatic problem-solving
• Relationships not regarded as important
• May be underlying anger and resentment
• Dominant strategy is control
• Reflective function is impaired and mental state of others is likely to be shunned
• Limited capacity for empathy
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
AmbivalentAmbivalent
• Develops in response to inconsistent, unreliable and at times intrusive responses from attachment figure
• Uncertainty about the worthiness of self
• Others are perceived to be unreliable, over-bearing and insensitive
• Environment is unpredictable and chaotic
• Cognitive responses are deactivated because they are experienced as ineffective
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
AmbivalentAmbivalent
• Affective responses are amplified
• Self-regulation is not achieved
• Helplessness and resentment dominate
• Dominant strategy is manipulation
• Heightened focus on internal state of self with impaired capacity to reflect on the internal state of others
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
DisorganisedDisorganised
• Arises in situations of neglect and abuse
• Child faced with task of maintaining proximity to person who is source of threat
• Caregiver frightening or frightened
• Self is perceived to be unworthy
• Others are frightening or helpless
• Environment is chaotic and dangerous
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
DisorganisedDisorganised
• Hyper-arousal impairs cognitive development
• Affective responses dominate
• Child is fearful and reactive
• Play is inhibited
• May develop compulsive compliance
• Dominant strategy is survival
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
DisorganisedDisorganised
• Capacity to reflect on own internal state is limited, may lack the ability to identify feeling states
• Hyper-vigilant of caregiver cues and internal state of other
• Reflective capacity significantly impaired
• Significant problems by adolescence
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Link with ResilienceLink with Resilience• Four crucial factors:
– Individual attributes– Family support– Community support, person or agency– Cultural connection
• Resilience is not an isolated individual characteristic
• Secure and consistent attachment facilitates resilience across all four domains
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Patterns of Attachment and Patterns of Attachment and ResilienceResilience
• Secure at an advantage - positive expectations of self and others, access to supportive adults and connections beyond family
• Avoidant and ambivalent may lack self-confidence, have low self-esteem and difficulty negotiating relationships, but do have coping strategies
• Disorganised, have no coping strategy and are the most vulnerable
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
SummarySummary• Internal working models formed in the early
years are reinforced by children’s experience in the world beyond home
• Insecure and disorganised likely to encounter rejection and censure from peers, teachers and other adults
• Negative outcomes are not inevitable
• Early and effective intervention is the key
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Way forwardWay forward
• OCC is proposing an Integrated Framework to provide support at the beginning of a child’s life, rather than ambulances at the bottom of the cliff
• Timely cost-effective intervention
• Systematic and co-ordinated approach that reaches across sectors and
• Prevents children from falling through the gaps
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Te Ara Tukutuku nga Te Ara Tukutuku nga Whanaungatanga o nga TamarikiWhanaungatanga o nga Tamariki
• Universal application
• First 18 years
• Whole child approach– Physical– Emotional– Cognitive– Social
• Capitalise on good start some children will get and ensure intensive support for families who need this
Photograph Used With PermissionTaonga Education Centre
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Weaving Pathways to Weaving Pathways to Well-beingWell-being
• Professional co-ordination and shared frame of reference
• Shared information
• Early intervention
• Develop and build on strengths
• Child-centred and family focused
• Partnership with familiesPhotograph Used With Permission
Taonga Education Centre
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Key Transition PointsKey Transition Points
• Pre-birth
• At time of entry to school
• When moving from primary school
• Prior to departure from secondary school
Photograph used with permission Kawerau South School
Young People’s Reference GroupPhotographs Used With PermissionTaonga Education Centre
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
Application to Child Application to Child OffendingOffending
• Early identification of families with multiple risk factors reduces likelihood of child developing severe behavioural difficulty
• Key worker can ensure engagement with and co-ordination of appropriate services
• If family fails to engage or is unable to make changes, formal intervention could be initiated before child has suffered repeated exposure to those experiences that contribute to negative outcomes
Working Together Conference26–28 November 2007Breaking Through the Bars
OCC VisionOCC Vision
The rights of every child and young person are recognised and each enjoys good health, education, safety and economic wellbeing