Dr. Carissa Augustyn on Empirical Studies of Sexual Offending

In this insightful episode of the Resolving Violence podcast, Arianna Gibson hosts Dr. Carissa Augustyn, an expert in clinical psychology with a focus on risk assessment, intimate partner violence, and sexual offending for an insightful conversation. Dr. Augustyn delves into her comprehensive review of empirically based dynamic risk and protective factors of sexual offending. This work, initially commissioned by the UK Ministry of Justice, aims to provide practitioners with key insights on risk and protective factors to enhance intervention and rehabilitation programs. Dr. Augustyn underscores the importance of understanding both dynamic and static factors, offering practical examples to clarify these complex concepts. 

Throughout the episode, Dr. Augustyn provides a thorough overview of the current state of research on risk factors. She identifies four critical domains: atypical sexuality, self-regulation problems, antisocial cognition, and relationship issues. Notably, the research reveals the increasing recognition of hostile masculinity and emotional regulation deficits as significant dynamic risk factors. Dr. Augustyn also emphasizes the emerging importance of understanding environmental and situational influences on offending behaviors, which could potentially provide new avenues for intervention and prevention strategies.

Dr. Augustyn's work also spotlights the relatively under-researched area of protective factors, highlighting the importance of prosocial influences and other environmental conditions that can aid in reducing offending behaviors. For practitioners, this episode offers valuable takeaways on efficiently targeting interconnected risk factors to maximize intervention outcomes. As always, if you found this episode helpful, please consider sharing it with colleagues and on social media to help spread valuable research and strategies for resolving violence.

About Our Guest: 

Dr. Carissa Augustyn is a highly regarded clinical psychologist who earned her doctorate from the University of Saskatchewan. With a robust research portfolio that spans risk assessment, intimate partner violence, and sexual offending, Dr. Augustyn has developed a keen focus on the prevention of child sexual abuse perpetration. She completed her predoctoral residency at the esteemed Center for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and currently serves as a postdoctoral fellow at the Royal Ottawa's Institute of Mental Health Research. As a registered provisional psychologist in Alberta, Dr. Augustyn is dedicated to advancing the understanding and application of empirically based dynamic risk and protective factors in both academic and practical settings to mitigate sexual offending behaviors.

To learn more about Resolve SK, head to research-groups.usask.ca/resolve/