Introduction to Sex Offenders

This course offers an overview of sexual offending and introduces probation officers to sex offender management and supervision in B.C. Community Corrections. Participants will explore myths and facts associated with sexual abusers and abuse, examine definitions of sexual offending in the Criminal Code of Canada, and will be introduced to typologies and psychological perspectives of sexually deviant behaviour. Participants will look at the impact of sexual offending on victims and the community and explore cognitive distortions and thinking errors commonly associated with sexual offending. They will also learn what sex offender programs and community resources constitute the Corrections Branch's treatment and maintenance of sex offenders, and how to manage critical incidents that may occur over the course of supervision.