Getting to "Yes - I have a problem"

Introduction

The following strategies are useful if the person is at the pre-contemplation stage. Your goal is to move the person from denying problems to acknowledging them.

Exert influence to persuade the person that their current situation is not good, and that it is sensible to feel concerned about it.

What you can do to exert influence:

understand the person
identify potential issues
encourage problem recognition
respect the person and acknowledge their right to choose.

Understand the person

These strategies will help you to understand the person:

Read the prisoner’s file, look at the offender plan on IOMS and note the identified rehabilitative needs.
Observe the person interacting with others.
Talk to them and listen to what they have to say.
Ask questions about what the prisoner likes and dislikes about their current lifestyle.

Identify potential issues

There are usually problems that, at some level, are troubling the person. Your task is to bring these issues to the surface, especially those issues linked to their offending.

Common problems are:

loss of contact with their partner
children having problems because of lack of parental control
health problems linked to drinking or drugs
loss of friendships, or relationships, due to being violent
poor prospects for future work or career
low self-esteem, shame
fear and depressions over being in prison
tired of associating with other offenders.

Encourage problem recognition

These strategies will help you to encourage the prisoner to recognise their problems.

Strategy	You might choose to say
Invite discussion on the benefits of staying the same.	“What do you like about this (offending) lifestyle?” Note: Accept that they may see these as benefits, but take care that you do not appear to agree with them.
Sensitively raise the assessment findings	“According to your assessment, you seem to have some pretty serious problems with both drugs and violence – what do you think about all that?”, or “Did the results from your assessment surprise you?”
Invite the person to consider links between their problems, continued offending, and future prospects. Important: Be tentative.	“This may not concern you but …” “Are you at all concerned that …” “Have you ever wondered whether you could be different / life could be different for you?” “I wonder if you have considered how much it really costs you to keep on offending?” “Does your partner / child / parent / friend ever express concerns about how your life is going?”, or “Have you ever wished that you could be respected rather than feared?”
Invite the person to imagine the future.	“What do you think will happen if you don’t change, say, in five year’s time?”
Encourage the person to think about the losses caused by their offending	“What do you think you might be missing out on by being this way / staying the same?”
Sensitively offer your observations / perceptions.	“What I see is someone with a lot of potential who seems to be throwing their life away on alcohol and drugs.”

There are usually problems that, at some level, are troubling the person. Your task is to bring these issues to the surface, especially those issues linked to their offending.

Common problems are:

loss of contact with their partner
children having problems because of lack of parental control
health problems linked to drinking or drugs
loss of friendships, or relationships, due to being violent
poor prospects for future work or career
low self-esteem, shame
fear and depressions over being in prison
tired of associating with other offenders.

Strategy	You might choose to say
Respond encouragingly to any acknowledgement of their having a problem, or even being willing to talk about it.	“You seem to be thinking seriously about how you want your life to be – that’s great!” Note: The above comment could be in response to a comment that they were “sick of prison”.
At the first sign of “contemplative” thinking, amplify the thought. Also use this strategy whenever the person discloses concerns about their life.	"What makes you think that you may have a problem?” "What’s the worst thing about …”

Strategy

You might choose to say

Respond encouragingly to any acknowledgement of their having a problem, or even being willing to talk about it.

“You seem to be thinking seriously about how you want your life to be – that’s great!”

Note: The above comment could be in response to a comment that they were “sick of prison”.

At the first sign of “contemplative” thinking, amplify the thought.

Also use this strategy whenever the person discloses concerns about their life.

"What makes you think that you may have a problem?”
"What’s the worst thing about …”

Respect the person

Most criminality is based on a lack of respect and concern for other people. A critical part of influencing prisoners towards change is through you as a staff member, in your behaviour, modelling respect and concern for others, particularly towards prisoners.

Avoid any display of irritation or frustration over a prisoner’s refusal to “see sense”. Instead, simply comment that “I guess you are not ready to face these issues yet.”

Always make it clear that it is the prisoner’s choice whether they change or not. No-one can make that choice for them.

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