The impact of indigenous cultural identity and cultural engagement on violent offending

Shepherd, SM; Delgado, RH; Sherwood, J; Paradies, Y

The impact of indigenous cultural identity and cultural engagement on violent offending

Shepherd, SM Delgado, RH Sherwood, J Paradies, Y

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: BMC Public Health, 2017, 18 (1)
Issue Date:: 2017-07-24

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Shepherd, SM	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Delgado, RH	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Sherwood, J	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Paradies, Y	en_US
dc.date.available	2017-07-17	en_US
dc.date.issued	2017-07-24	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	BMC Public Health, 2017, 18 (1)	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/129253
dc.description.abstract	© 2017 The Author(s). Background: Possessing a strong cultural identity has been shown to protect against mental health symptoms and buffer distress prompted by discrimination. However, no research to date has explored the protective influences of cultural identity and cultural engagement on violent offending. This paper investigates the relationships between cultural identity/engagement and violent recidivism for a cohort of Australian Indigenous people in custody. Methods: A total of 122 adults from 11 prisons in the state of Victoria completed a semi-structured interview comprising cultural identification and cultural engagement material in custody. All official police charges for violent offences were obtained for participants who were released from custody into the community over a period of 2 years. Results: No meaningful relationship between cultural identity and violent recidivism was identified. However a significant association between cultural engagement and violent recidivism was obtained. Further analyses demonstrated that this relationship was significant only for participants with a strong Indigenous cultural identity. Participants with higher levels of cultural engagement took longer to violently re-offend although this association did not reach significance. Conclusions: For Australian Indigenous people in custody, 'cultural engagement' was significantly associated with non-recidivism. The observed protective impact of cultural engagement is a novel finding in a correctional context. Whereas identity alone did not buffer recidivism directly, it may have had an indirect influence given its relationship with cultural engagement. The findings of the study emphasize the importance of culture for Indigenous people in custody and a greater need for correctional institutions to accommodate Indigenous cultural considerations.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	BMC Public Health	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1186/s12889-017-4603-2	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Public Health	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Humans	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Cohort Studies	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Aggression	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Mental Health	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Mental Disorders	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Cultural Characteristics	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Adult	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Middle Aged	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Oceanic Ancestry Group	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Prisoners	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Victoria	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Female	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Male	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Young Adult	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Criminals	en_US
dc.title	The impact of indigenous cultural identity and cultural engagement on violent offending	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	1	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	18	en_US
utslib.for	1117 Public Health and Health Services	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.issue	1	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	18	en_US

Abstract:

© 2017 The Author(s). Background: Possessing a strong cultural identity has been shown to protect against mental health symptoms and buffer distress prompted by discrimination. However, no research to date has explored the protective influences of cultural identity and cultural engagement on violent offending. This paper investigates the relationships between cultural identity/engagement and violent recidivism for a cohort of Australian Indigenous people in custody. Methods: A total of 122 adults from 11 prisons in the state of Victoria completed a semi-structured interview comprising cultural identification and cultural engagement material in custody. All official police charges for violent offences were obtained for participants who were released from custody into the community over a period of 2 years. Results: No meaningful relationship between cultural identity and violent recidivism was identified. However a significant association between cultural engagement and violent recidivism was obtained. Further analyses demonstrated that this relationship was significant only for participants with a strong Indigenous cultural identity. Participants with higher levels of cultural engagement took longer to violently re-offend although this association did not reach significance. Conclusions: For Australian Indigenous people in custody, 'cultural engagement' was significantly associated with non-recidivism. The observed protective impact of cultural engagement is a novel finding in a correctional context. Whereas identity alone did not buffer recidivism directly, it may have had an indirect influence given its relationship with cultural engagement. The findings of the study emphasize the importance of culture for Indigenous people in custody and a greater need for correctional institutions to accommodate Indigenous cultural considerations.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/129253