Louise Dixon

• BSc; MSc; PhD
• Professor (Full) at Victoria University of Wellington

In recent years, epistemic pluralism has received considerable endorsement as an approach to constructing scientific explanations and pursuing empirical research programs. In this article, we briefly discuss the advantages of an epistemically pluralist approach before outlining our own model of epistemic pluralism. The model we present emphasizes t...

The current research aimed to examine (1) the characteristics of rangatahi identified as having set fires in Aotearoa New Zealand, (2) the reach and uptake of the Fire Awareness and Intervention Programme (FAIP) and, (3) factors which act as facilitators and barriers to engagement with the FAIP. The full report and results can be accessed here: h...

The extensive impact of gang-related harms on communities has led to a broad range of stakeholders investing in attempts to respond to gangs. Resultantly, many gang definitions, typologies, and explanations have been developed and adopted. This uncoordinated multiplicity has presented significant difficulties for developing shared understandings an...

This study is part of a larger research project that developed the event process model of family violence (FVEPM). The FVEPM was developed by applying grounded theory methods to the event narratives of 14 men and 13 women completing community-based family violence (FV) perpetrator treatment programs. The current study extends this work with the ori...

Background People who suffer from opioid use disorders (illicit and prescription opioids) are disproportionately involved in criminal activities and a high percentage of those incarcerated suffer from these disorders. Despite the established efficacy of pharmacotherapy for opioid use disorders this intervention is infrequently offered to criminal j...

The extensive impact of gang-related harms on communities has led to a broad range of stakeholders investing in attempts to respond to gangs. Resultantly, many gang definitions, typologies, and explanations have been developed and adopted. This uncoordinated multiplicity has presented significant difficulties for developing shared understandings an...

The event process model of family violence (FVEPM) presents a descriptive theory of a family violence (FV) event from the perpetrator’s perspective. Developed in a community setting, the FVEPM is comprised of four interrelated sections and describes three pathways to FV perpetration (Pathway 1: Conflict escalation, Pathway 2: Automated violence, an...

The criminal justice system plays a pivotal role in addressing the safety of victims of intimate partner abuse (IPA). Over the past 40 years, most changes in the criminal justice response to IPA have been made with the intention of improving support to abused women and their children. However, a growing body of research shows there are many men who...

This qualitative study explores the experiences of men who self-report victimization from a female intimate partner in four English-speaking countries. Forty-one men who reported any type of intimate partner abuse (IPA) from a female partner were recruited via targeted advertising in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Twe...

This qualitative study explores internal and external barriers to help seeking among 41 men from four English-speaking countries who self-reported victimization from a female intimate partner. Twelve online focus groups were conducted and themes were identified inductively at a semantic level. Six identified themes represented four internal (blind...

Despite a growing number of studies exploring perpetrator's motives for intimate partner violence (IPV), methodological and conceptual issues evident in current research continue to limit our understanding of such motives. In an effort to address these issues, Flynn and Graham (2010) developed a conceptual model of perceived reasons for IPV; howeve...

Research shows that intimate relationships, and their maintenance via prison visits, have a positive impact on factors associated with prisoner well‐being and reduced likelihood of recidivism. It is therefore in the interest of corrections, government, and wider society to enable prisoners to maintain healthy relationships with their family and int...

Offense process models are descriptive theories that provide a temporal outline of an offense—including its cognitive, behavioral, contextual, and motivational components—from a perpetrator’s perspective. Offense process models have been developed for a wide range of criminal offending (e.g., alcohol-impaired driving, child sexual offending, rape,...

Discussions about the gang construct and appropriate definitions have been pervasive throughout gang research. This paper seeks to shed light on these discussions by adopting a theoretical perspective to examine the suitability of 'gangs' as a target of explanation and the appropriateness of current definitional approaches. First, we examine the va...

Discussions about the gang construct and appropriate definitions have been pervasive throughout gang research. This paper seeks to shed light on these discussions by adopting a theoretical perspective to examine the suitability of ‘gangs’ as a target of explanation and the appropriateness of current definitional approaches. First, we examine the va...

This review adapts a previously prescribed multifactorial model of multiple perpetrator sexual offending (Harkins & Dixon, 2010) to more fully inform explanations of different types of interpersonal violent crime. First, factors within the sociocultural and situational contexts of the model are reviewed, as well as the interactions between them and...

Attachment often contributes to decision-making in child care proceedings. 1 Attachment refers to the protection and comfort that caregivers provide and these are precisely the attributes threatened in child care proceedings. Assessment of attachment can reveal family mem-bers' protective strategies, the historical experiences that have shaped the...

Research shows that the experiences of male victims of partner abuse (PA) are often denied by the public and the professionals who are charged to support PA victims. Recruiting female victims for research on PA victimization is relatively easy because there are existing structures to serve this group of victims. Thus, male victims are considered a...

Intimate partner violence is predominantly viewed as a social problem of men’s violence against women. However, a growing evidence base suggests an equal prevalence rate for male and female perpetrated intimate partner physical aggression. Moreover, female perpetrated intimate partner violence is often assumed to be reactive, yet there is limited e...

Mindfulness is linked with improved regulatory processes of attention and emotion. The potential benefits of mindfulness are vast, including more positive emotional states and diminished arousal in response to emotional stimuli. This study aims to expand of the current knowledge of the mechanisms of mindfulness by relating the latter to cardiovascu...

The current study assessed a wide range of offense supportive cognitions in relation to the perpetration of physical intimate partner violence (IPV). This research used both implicit and explicit measures in a U.K. sample of 19 male IPV perpetrators recruited from a community-based IPV intervention program and 20 men from the community with no hist...

This chapter considers the child within the context of the family unit and explores the co-occurrence of physical intimate partner abuse (IPV) with child physical abuse (CPA). It presents an overview of the co-occurrence rates, effects on the child, risk factors and theoretical explanations for this overlap and the implications this evidence has fo...

This introductory chapter presents an overview of the concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. Family violence and child maltreatment is a serious and international public health concern. The book aims to put the need to evidence child protection practice at the forefront. It sets out to provide a comprehensive overview of the cu...

This chapter provides the reader with a critical overview of the intimate partner violence (IPV) literature that highlights discrepancies in theoretical explanations of IPV and empirical research methodology and findings derived from these theories. It considers the merits of responding to this societal problem from a psychological perspective, and...

Advocating greater engagement between children’s and carceral geographies, this paper explores the spaces of parenting as they exist within a UK male prison, building upon criminological research on the effects of imprisonment on prisoners’ families and children. Focusing primarily on the visiting room, it extends discussion of the specificities of...

The effect of family visits on prisoner well-being and future behavior is an important consideration in the development of prison policy. This review systematically examines current research findings that explore the impact of prison visits from family members on three specific offender outcomes: prisoners' well-being, rule breaking within the pris...

The intergenerational cycle of violence hypothesis (often summarily described as ‘violence begets violence’) refers to assumptions or hypotheses about the consequences of child abuse and neglect in relation to a number of different outcomes, including its perpetuation across generations. This article reviews some of the channels by which this cycle...

This study examined male prisoners' experiences of participating in the Chromis programme, which aims to address violent behaviour in offenders with high levels of psychopathic traits. Four men who had completed Chromis and moved to new locations were purposefully sampled. This provided the opportunity for men to discuss their experiences after par...

Previous research indicates a strong association between gang membership and increased offending behaviour. Several risk factors for gang membership have been identified and incorporated into integrated and developmental theories of gang membership. Despite this, little is known about the psychological processes that underpin gang membership and en...

This study assessed the reliability and validity of the Hare Self-Report Psychopathy Scale (Hare SRP) and the short form of the measure in a UK prison sample, using the Psychopathy Checklist Revised (PCL-R) as a reference measure. The Hare SRP and PCL-R were compared for 107 UK adult male prisoners. The SRP and SRP-SF total scores depicted excellen...

Purpose – Weapon use is recognised as a key crime concern in England and Wales but has received relatively little focused research. The purpose of this paper is to examine weapon use by sexual offenders to develop new insights relevant for a police audience. Specifically, to examine the prevalence of weapons within sexual offenders and explore the...

This review systematically examines the empirical literature to determine the support available for seven proposed Implicit Theories (ITs) held by heterosexual male and female perpetrators of intimate partner violence. Based on previous literature that has hypothesized and identified ITs in intimate partner violence (IPV) and other types of offende...

Recent studies of multiwave risk assessment have investigated the association between changes in risk factors and violent recidivism. This study analyzed a large multiwave data set of English and Welsh offenders (N � 196,493), assessed in realistic correctional conditions using the static/dynamic Offender Assessment System (OASys). It aimed to comp...

This book aims to review and bring up to date the ‘What Works’ literature in offender assessment and rehabilitation. By evaluating current assessment frameworks and intervention programmes this volume not only discusses theory and treatment efficacy but provides professionals with an evidence-based approach to rehabilitation with a variety of offen...

Psychopathy is recognized as a significant issue for the criminal justice system as it negatively impacts re-offending, compliance with institutional rules and regimes, inpatient interpersonal aggression in secure settings and responses to treatment. This chapter provides an overview of how the most commonly used measure to assess psychopathy, the...

This is the introductory chapter of What Works in Offender Rehabilitation: An Evidence-Based Approach to Assessment and Treatment. Addressing the methodological concerns raised by Lipton, Martinson and Wilks and Brody, research into offender rehabilitation has culminated in a 'what works' research literature-The Psychology of Criminal Conduct, What...

The aim of this review is to examine the literature related to the assessment and treatment of sex offenders' distorted schemas. Where appropriate, the review draws upon current insights from the field of social cognition to aid in the critical evaluation of the findings. First, the review considers the various different methodologies for assessing...

Purpose. The ideologically based view of intimate partner violence has traditionally influenced policy and practice in modern western nations and dominated cross-national research and practice. This review considers the validity of the position statement of a British organization responsible for accrediting many male perpetrator programmes in the s...

Purpose. To reply to the comments made by Debbonaire and Todd (2012) in relation to our critique of Respect's Position Statement. Method. We examined their reply in relation to our original article and to the wider research literature. Results. We show that Debbonaire and Todd's reply is largely a series of assertions, for which little or no suppor...

Chromis was accredited by the Correction Services Accreditation Panel in 2005 as an intervention designed to reduce violence in offenders whose level or combination of psychopathic traits disrupts their ability to engage in treatment and change. It runs as part of the regime in the dangerous and severe personality disorder unit in HM Prison Frankla...

This review systematically investigates rates of physical intimate partner violence for both sexes in international samples. Surveys that accessed nationally representative samples, used gender inclusive methodology and neutral contexts are reviewed to determine 12-month and lifetime victimization and perpetration rates. Discrepancies between inter...

Theoretical perspectives underlying hypotheses about the nature and etiology of intimate partner violence are important as they inform professionals how they should best respond to reduce or eliminate this social problem. Therefore, it is crucial that practice led initiatives are driven by theory that is supported by good quality empirical evidence...

Purpose – The classification of criminal acts as violent or nonviolent should be a keystone of actuarial predictors of violent recidivism, as it affects their outcome measure and scoring of criminal history, thus influencing many decisions about sentencing, release and treatment allocation. Examination of existing actuarial and clinical violence ri...

This review evaluates the quality of recent meta-analyses on child sexual abuse and adult psychopathology. Using systematic review methods, seven recently published, English-language meta-analyses met the inclusion criteria of assessing outcome of child sexual abuse. Some methodological weaknesses were identified, such as failure to assess the vali...

This review evaluates the quality of recent meta-analyses on child sexual abuse and adult psychopathology. Using systematic review methods, seven recently published, English-language meta-analyses met the inclusion criteria of assessing outcome of child sexual abuse. Some methodological weaknesses were identified, such as failure to assess the vali...

Theoretical perspectives underlying hypotheses about the nature and etiology of intimate partner violence are important as they inform professionals how they should best respond to reduce or eliminate this social problem. Therefore, it is crucial that practice led initiatives are driven by theory that is supported by good quality empirical evidence...

‘Stalker guilty of stabbing exgirlfriend to death in brutal attack’ (London Evening Standard, 2010) ‘Bridge game fights “led man to murder wife”’ (Reuters, 2010) ‘Horror as man kills himself after stabbing ex-partner outside Tesco store’ (Daily Record, 2010) Attention-grabbing headlines like these that depict murderous scenes of male-perpetrated...

This study examined the concurrent and prospective associations between children's ability to accurately recognize facial affect at age 8.5 and antisocial behavior at age 8.5 and 10.5 years in a sub sample of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children cohort (5,396 children; 2,644, 49% males). All observed effects were small. It was found...

This review provides a current description of a number of contexts in which multiple perpetrator sexual offending occurs. Specifically, seven sub-categories of offences are examined under two main themes of ‘rape of peers/adults’ and ‘multiple perpetrator offenses against children.’ This is complimented by a discussion of psychological theories and...

The feasibility and prevalence of reciprocal, hierarchical and paternal patterns of family aggression hypothesised by Dixon and Browne (2003) were explored within a sample of maltreating families. The psychological reports of 67 families referred to services for alleged child maltreatment that evidenced concurrent physical intimate partner violence...

The feasibility and prevalence of Reciprocal, Hierarchical and Paternal patterns of family aggression hypothesised by Dixon and Browne (2003) were explored within a sample of maltreating families. The psychological reports of 67 families referred to services for alleged child maltreatment that evidenced concurrent physical intimate partner violence...

Purpose. The ideologically based view of intimate partner violence has traditionally influenced policy and practice in modern western nations and dominated cross-national research and practice. This review considers the validity of the position statement of a British organization responsible for accrediting many male perpetrator programmes in the s...

The Offender Assessment System (OASys) is the risk assessment and management system routinely used in the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), the prison and probation service for England and Wales. This study describes the construction and validation of a new actuarial violence risk measure, the OASys Violence Predictor (OVP), using OASys...

This study aims to use pre-treatment assessment scores to predict the drop out of 103 incarcerated male violent perpetrators undertaking a long-term aggression programme, namely the Cognitive Self Change Programme (CSCP), in six English prisons. A hierarchy of best predictors of attrition in this sample is developed. Results found eight out of the...

This study investigates the continuation and discontinuation of the intergenerational transmission of child maltreatment within the first year of the child’s life. Differences in risk factors and parenting styles between families who initiate (Initiators), maintain (Maintainers) or break (Cycle Breakers) the intergenerational cycle of child maltrea...

This study investigates the continuation and discontinuation of the intergenerational transmission of child maltreatment within the first 13 months of the child’s life. Differences in risk factors and parenting styles between families who initiate (Initiators), maintain (Maintainers) or break (Cycle Breakers) the intergenerational cycle of child ma...

The heterogeneity of domestic violent men has long been established. However, research has failed to examine this phenomenon among men committing the most severe form of domestic violence. This study aims to use a multidimensional approach to empirically construct a classification system of men who are incarcerated for the murder of their female pa...

This study considers the characteristics associated with mothers and fathers who maltreat their child and each other in comparison to parents who only maltreat their child. One hundred and sixty-two parents who had allegations of child maltreatment made against them were considered. The sample consisted of 43 fathers (Paternal Family—PF) and 23 mot...

Reviews on the causes of aggression in the family have emphasised the extensive overlap between all forms of partner violence and child maltreatment. However, research into family violence has often investigated child and partner maltreatment as separate entities, frequently examining the violent man in order to understand the correlates and potent...

This study provides an exploration of factors implicated in the intergenerational cycle of child maltreatment. Families with newborns where at least one of the parents was physically and/or sexually abused as a child (AP families) were compared in terms of risk factors to families where the parents had no childhood history of victimization (NAP fam...

This study extends previous research (Dixon, Browne, & Hamilton-Giachritsis, 2004) by exploring the mediational properties of parenting styles and their relation to risk factors in the intergenerational cycle of child maltreatment. Families with newborns where at least one of the parents was physically and/or sexually abused as a child (AP families...

Recent research suggests that spouse abusers are not a homogeneous group. Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart [Psychol. Bull. 116 (1994) 476] propose three types of domestic violent men: family only, generally violent/antisocial, and dysphoric/borderline personality. This theoretical classification is compared to nine empirical research studies and two hy...

Final report of a project carried out from September 2010 to June 2011.