Chapter 1 Introduction to OASys The assessment of risk posed by an offender, and the identification of the factors which have contributed to the offending, are the starting points for all work with offenders. This chapter outlines why assessment is important, and explains what the Offender Assessment System (OASys) is intended to do. What Works There is now a body of research evidence, the so-called What Works literature, amassed over the last two decades that challenges the pessimistic view that ‘nothing works with offenders’.
The new research, predominantly North American, provides consistent indications that rates of reconviction can be reduced by addressing factors that place the offender at future risk. According to McGuire (1996) these factors, often described as ‘criminogenic’, can be social or personal, have a causal or contributory role in offending acts and should be the target of intervention. Andrews (1996) defined a criminogenic factor as any area where the offender currently had needs or deficits, in which a reduction in the need or deficit would lead to a reduction in the risk of reconviction.
A reliable way to discriminate criminogenic factors from other characteristics of offenders is to assess the predictive power of different characteristics in relation to reconviction. Criminogenic factors are those which predict reconviction. Some criminogenic factors are well established, such as employment and drug misuse, but others are less well defined, especially for specific groups of unusual offenders. The research is by no means conclusive, there will, no doubt, be some expansion and refinement of our understanding of what works best with different types of offenders as the evidence base develops in this country .
However, the most recent evaluations of the Prison Service- accredited programmes for general offending have demonstrated reductions in reconviction rates for prisoners who have completed the programmes that target in the way suggested by the What Works literature. Reviews of some of the more robust studies, using a statistical technique which allows the results from many evaluations to be compared, have made it possible to begin to identify the components of effective intervention. Key principles can be drawn from research.
They have been reflected in guidance that went out to all prison governors in 1996, in the HM Inspectorate of Probation Guide to Effective Practice 1998 , and are in the OASys Manual V2 © Crown Copyright 2002 Page 1