Most offenders working with a forensic psychologist will have an offence formulation — that is, a hypothesis of why they offended underpinned by psychological theory. Therefore, the question of why people offend is not just at the heart of day-to-day forensic practice, it is the forensic psychologist’s ‘bread and butter’.
How easy is it to explain human behaviour, never mind offending behaviour? You may have noticed that psychological theories that explain offending behaviour can be applied to a range of human behaviours and so perhaps it is useful to consider what drives human behaviour more widely. Why does anyone do anything? This broader question has the benefit of supporting a non-judgemental approach in which offending behaviour is not necessarily viewed as an isolated, deliberate attempt to subvert social values, rules or norms, but rather can be thought about as part of more pervasive and persistent behavioural responses unique to that individual.
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