Personal and professional consequences on therapists treating offenders in the juvenile probation service

Social correction services aimed to provide rehabilitative and attentive treatment designated to minors and adolescence offenders. This correctional work based on interpersonal encounter between therapists and serious abusive offenders. Extensive academic papers can be found regarding offenders treatment methods, diagnostics procedures, risk violence evaluation and rehabilitation potential. However, in recent years a new field of research focused on the other individual in therapy - the therapist. This field evolved out of various studies aimed to understand the impact of trauma treatments on therapists.

Over the years, various studies have found that therapists are substantially exposed and affected by traumatic abuses, which they had encountered as part of abusers treatments. Studies indicate negative and positive projections specified in three main principles: Secondary Traumatization - psychological stress resulted by exposure to significant one's traumatic event. Vicarious Traumatization - continual and gradual impact of therapist's internal experience and change in cognitive perspective and Vicarious Posttraumatic Growth - the acknowledgment of the therapist's personal gain or benefit as a result of the therapy process.

It is important to emphasize that the main research concentrates on the therapist's personal and professional projections in cases of sexual abuse and violence related offenders as a whole. The research population - juvenile probation officers deal with all kind of offenders. This research examined how these therapists understand the implications of treating offenders on their personal and professional life, what they need to deal with in their job, what are their struggles and what benefits they gain from it.

The study is distinctive due to its reference to the - juvenile probation officers population, while not overseeing the complexity of treatment relations in the probation service as a whole. First, because juvenile probation service is involuntary (forced) for the patient. The juvenile offenders are referred to probation service's treatment by law and are not self-initiated. In other words, the probation officer is using legal authorization as a treatment tool. Secondly, and as in every practice of therapy, there is a need to carry out an empathic inclusive method on the patients. The study emphasizes the way therapists grasp the authority given to them as part of their role and the complexity of developing empathy with those who committed serious offenses.

The study conducted as a qualitative research by semi-constructed interviews with references to daily therapists' experiences and their practical perceptions of their job. Population of research was juvenile probation officers. Sample included 15 juvenile probation officers, men and women in various ages, seniorities and education, who work in the juvenile probation services across Israel.  The sample selected by purposeful sampling. Interviews were content analyzed to detect themes or repeated categories stemmed from the answers and formed by conversations, between the theoretical perspective the study came from and the data gathered.

1. After analyzing the interviews, the findings chapter focus on two main themes: The first theme deals with the therapist's perception of the changes occurring in their intrinsic experience. Out of the findings, there are some changes, which therapists see as positive and self-promoting as well as difficult ones. Three Reference circles were described: 1) A change in the probation officer's worldview - a conclude could be made that extensive exposure to offensiveness stimulate stress, suspiciousness, effects self-confidence and sometimes distorts the therapist's general world view and especially his conceptualization of the Israeli society. Some changes effect the therapist's everyday life as citizens in the society. However, some therapists stressed out that their professional expertise reveals before them unknown parts of the society and enables them to get to know better various sectors in the population, changes their world perspective for the best and therefore their appreciation and gratitude increase, etc. 2) A change in the probation officer's personal relationship perception - probation officers found that treating offenders projects on the way they perceive and act in their most meaningful relationships, specifically the family cell and regarding their significant others. On the other hand, and as mentioned before, self-growth and positive influences were articulated regarding how the therapists perceive the meaningful relationships in their lives. 3) A change in the probation officer's perception of self - probation officers who participated in the study described the offensive juvenile's treatment as a role that required a great deal of mental competence due to the exposure to serious abusive matters, because of the offenses themselves and because of the life circumstances that brought their patients to committing those offenses. However, there were noticeable expressions of self-moral strength and self-perception evolvement as a result of facing these issues.  

The second theme deals with the role of authorization and empathy in the therapist's experience, how juvenile probation officers perceive their role aspects and the linkage to their own intrinsic experience changes as was mentioned in the first theme. Findings show that empathy and authorization are complicated conceptions, and the therapist have a continual dialogue from the moment the treatment process begins and onward, through experience and seniority.

It seems that empathy and authorization have a great contribution to the therapist - both in the relationship with the juvenile and in his ability to assist. In addition to that, there is an immense self-contribution; on the one hand, the empathy helps the therapist understand the juvenile and see not only the offensive action, but also the picture as a whole, which contributes to the therapist and the juvenile interpersonal connection. On the other hand, this authorization facilitates a degree of distance and detachment as a protective measure.

As a qualitative research, this study has several limitations. First, regarding the measurement method, which carried out using semi-structured interview and not by methods found consistent and valid. Second, another limitation is the sample size, which does not represent, generalize and conclude the entire population of juvenile probation officers. Third, the qualitative research has a subjective nature which can lead to my personal interpretation as a researcher by choosing how to analyzing the findings and by choosing each themes to focus on.

This study is a valuable opportunity to better understanding of juvenile probation officers' prospective and to bring to light their personal and professional difficulties. It could be used for further discussions on ways of coping and how to address those difficulties, and also on ways to professionally and emotionally assist juvenile probation officers, and moreover as a base to future studies.