The Impact of Motivational Interviewing on Criminal Offenders

For my research project I will be studying the effects that Motivational Interviewing has on criminal offenders in a probation office setting. Motivational Interviewing has been proven effective with substance abusers, so if implemented correctly it may also be effective with criminal offenders, and those that are also substance abusers. I believe that motivational interviewing will help to decrease recidivism, and the original LSI score that the client is assigned at intake. The clients took their LSI during intake, and the LSI tells probation what their top three criminogenic needs that need to be addressed are, in addition to what their “risk” score is—a higher score equals more risk. The clients were then reassessed after six months of motivational interviewing, with the same LSI to evaluate whether their criminogenic needs had changed, and if their score had decreased. Overall, the clients were found to have a decreased LSI score, and were more likely to complete probation successfully when motivational interviewing was used. This research project contributes to the area of social work because it will allow for social workers to interact with their clients, and see improvement in their clients through a new, more effective, technique