Center for Adult and Continuing Studies

Course Description

Most social workers will work with someone who has committed a sex offense during their career, yet this population is usually not covered during formal education. This self-paced workshop is led by a social work student with a panel of experts from the Michigan Department of Corrections and Berghuis Psychological Services. The panel will discuss best practices, myths, and barriers to success when working with individuals who have committed sex offenses. The panel discussion has been segmented into smaller clips, divided by additional resources including: risk assessment tools, therapeutic models, history of legislative acts that have shaped the criminal justice response to this population, and the sex offender registry. Unlike our other self-paced courses, this course requires a combination of reading, videos, and slides.

Course Level: Beginner

Objectives:

1. Learners will have an enhanced understanding of the barriers for individuals with sexual offenses.
2. Learners will develop an understanding of the purpose and technique behind sex offense specific treatment, including the risk assessment tools.
3. Learners will have increased empathy for people who have committed sexual offenses.
4. Learners will become familiar with many research studies in the field of people who have committed sexual offenses.