Search results

Virtual reality (VR) is a novel technology that could be used in the assessment and/or treatment of deliberate firesetting. This study aims to develop an understanding of clinicians’ views of VR for deliberate firesetting, to identify areas where VR could potentially add value to current practice and any particular barriers to using VR in this context.

Through an online survey, 73 clinicians rated their agreement with nine potential benefits of using VR for firesetting and 11 potential barriers to using it. They also provided free text responses detailing the greatest perceived potential benefit and the greatest perceived barrier. Factors related to intent to use VR for firesetting in the future were explored.

Clinicians perceived the ability to safely expose clients to fire-related stimuli to be highly beneficial. However, clinicians were concerned about the possibility of re-traumatisation and logistic barriers. Previous experience of using VR with individuals who have set fires was significantly related to using it in the future.

Further research establishing the feasibility and effectiveness of using VR with individuals who have set fires may help alleviate clinicians’ concerns. Increasing opportunities for clinicians to experience a firesetting VR programme may widen the implementation of firesetting VR.

Previous research has only focused on clinicians’ perceptions of VR in the general field of forensic mental health and has failed to consider offence-specific applications.

This study aims to assess the prevalence of firesetting in a sample of young UK adults aged 18 to 23 years and to compare their characteristics with non-firesetting individuals.

Two-hundred and forty male (n = 119, 49.6%) and female (n = 121, 50.4%) participants were recruited through Prolific Academic. Comparisons were made between self-reported firesetting and non-firesetting participants on a range of demographic, fire-related and personality measures. Factors predictive of firesetting status were examined using hierarchical logistic regression.

Twenty-five percent of participants (n = 60) reported igniting a deliberate fire. Logistic regression was used to examine the ability of parental supervision and behavioural issues (e.g., witnessing domestic violence, experimenting with fire before age 10 and family history of firesetting), antisocial behaviours (e.g., having criminal friends, impulsivity, teenage access to fire paraphernalia, skipping class more than once per week, taken any illegal drugs and participation in criminal behaviour) and fire-related interests, attitudes and propensities in predicting firesetting status. Factors found to distinguish firesetting and non-firesetting participants included the following: experimented with fire before 10 years of age, family history of firesetting, impulsivity, teenage access to fire paraphernalia, participation in criminal behaviour and the Fire Setting Scale.

The results provide key information about potential risk factors relating to un-apprehended firesetting in the general population.

This research adds to the small body of literature examining firesetting in the general population. It refines previously used methodologies, presents the first research study to examine the prevalence of firesetting behaviour in emerging adults and enhances our understanding of un-apprehended firesetting.

The purpose of this paper is to gather epidemiologicalinformation concerning firesetters with intellectual disabilities (ID) in Denmark to identify the assessment and treatment needs of this population and inform further research in this area.

The records held by the Danish Ministry of Justice concerning all firesetters with ID convicted of deliberate firesetting were reviewed for the period January 2001 to December 2010 inclusive. File information was extracted for 83 offenders concerning: demographic and personal characteristics; mental health characteristics; offending behaviour; offence-specific factors; and motives for offending. A sub-group of seven offenders were interviewed to explore some of the themes that emerged from the file review.

The majority of study participants were male and were classified as having mild ID and around 50 per cent had additional mental health problems. Many came from disturbed and deprived backgrounds. Two-thirds had set more than one fire and over 60 per cent had convictions for offences other than firesetting. Alcohol was involved in the firesetting behaviour in a significant proportion of cases (25 per cent). The motives for setting fires were – in descending order – communication (of anger, frustration and distress), fire fascination and vandalism. Interviews with participants indicated the important communicative function of firesetting, the difficulties people had in talking about and acknowledging their firesetting behaviour, and lack of access to targeted interventions.

Interventions for Danish firesetters with ID, as for firesetters with ID elsewhere, need to target the communicative function of this behaviour, along with offenders’ lack of insight and initial reluctance to accept responsibility for their behaviour and associated risks. Adjunctive treatment is required to address the psychiatric comorbidity experienced by many of these offenders, along with the alcohol use/misuse that is associated with many of these offences.

This is the first study concerning nature and needs of firesetters with ID in Denmark.

In intervening to prevent recidivism by adult firesetters, there is a dearth of standardised interventions and relatedly of controlled outcome evaluations. Although education is a common firesetter intervention, it is unclear if this changes behaviour of adults; a research situation the current study aimed to address.

The rate of actual fire recidivism of participants of a standardised educational programme was compared using Cooke’s (1989) equation to expected rates based on the firesetting history of 93 referrals.

Results indicated a significant large effect for the difference between the frequencies of expected and actual firesetting re-offences.

Limitations of the one-group pretest–posttest design are discussed with respect to potential confounds.

This paper adds to the literature on adult firesetter interventions and lends support to the use of fire education to prevent fire recidivism. It provides the first empirically validated example of a structured education programme for adult firesetters. Of interest to services piloting new intervention programmes, it reports an operationally efficient methodology for preliminary evaluation.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first reported outcome study of a fire safety education programme for adults. The methodology adopted represents a means of preliminary evaluation in safety-critical areas where traditional evaluation designs are infeasible.

The aim of this paper is to review the current literature on working with young people with intellectual disabilities who commit arson.

A review of assessment methods and interventions involving young people with intellectual disabilities who start fires was completed. It explores the trends across the population of firesetters as a whole and also compares how treatment implications may differ for young people with and without an intellectual disability.

The paper outlines the core risk factors to be investigated within an assessment of a young firesetter with intellectual disabilities. In terms of treatment, the best current approach appears to be a combination of education and cognitive behavioural approaches including social skills training. Other treatment modalities, e.g. joint interventions provided by fire services and mental health services, are also discussed.

Given the lack of available literature on young firesetters with intellectual disabilities it is hoped that this paper will be useful in guiding clinicians working in this area and also prompt future research regarding treatment with this client group.

This paper aims to outline the first stages of an exploratory study into how the UK fire and rescue services (FRSs) identify those children and young people who require psychosocial interventions to address their firesetting behaviour.

A purposive sample (N = 53) representing all the UK FRSs was recruited. Participants completed an online survey to establish the type of firesetting intervention provided, if any; the training and policies available to staff who identify those clients requiring psychosocial interventions and what influences this decision-making.

Decision-making on how to identify clients requiring psychosocial interventions was dominated by professional judgement informed by practitioner training and experience alone, which is subject to human error and bias. Some staff undertaking this risk-critical work have no access to training and/or written guidance to assist their decision-making. Nearly 30% of participants (N = 14) deemed national firesetting policy as not useful in identifying the type of firesetting intervention needed. The development of a risk assessment tool, training and national written guidance were considered the three main ways staff could be helped in identifying those clients requiring psychosocial interventions.

The implications are as follows: the development of a risk assessment tool for fire and rescue service staff working with children and young people who set fires, a requirement for all fire and rescue staff working with children and young people who set fires to receive mandatory training in this specialist field of work, all FRSs to offer firesetting intervention services to children and young people, all FRSs to have written firesetting policies that assist staff in their identification of firesetting risk and national firesetting guidance for FRSs that assists staff in their identification of firesetting risk and the tenets of defensible decision-making.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to look at how the UK FRSs identify those children and young people requiring psychosocial interventions to address their firesetting behaviour. The 100% completion rate to the online survey suggests the findings are generalisable across all the UK FRSs, providing the FRS professional body with an opportunity to instigate the changes their frontline practitioners and managers have identified.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the implementation and evaluation of interventions for women firesetters in high secure mental healthcare at the UK’s National Women’s Service.

Two types of Arson treatment programmes for women, one delivered to individuals, the other within a group context, were developed, delivered and evaluated. The evaluation incorporated qualitative and quantitative data, including psychometric measures. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis.

The evaluation evidenced very high engagement with and attendance at treatment programmes, and several post-treatment gains. Participants’ ratings of programmes and qualitative feedback were similarly very positive. The study demonstrated that engaging women firesetters in their treatment is paramount and can be facilitated by consistent boundaries around therapy provision balanced with sensitivity, empathy and flexibility; providing interactive and varied teaching methods; ongoing service user involvement and recognising participants’ achievements; employing a mixed cognitive analytic therapy and cognitive behavioural therapy therapeutic approach; having input from fire service staff; and maintaining organisational support for firesetting interventions.

In all, 12 key recommendations are made for clinicians considering offering treatment programmes for women firesetters.

Amid few published papers on treating women firesetters this paper guides forensic clinicians in establishing and delivering interventions for women firesetters.

Fire-related offences are costly in human and financial terms. Fire education is widely used with juveniles and with adults in forensic psychiatric settings; however, with prison/probation clients there has been a lack of focus on its potential. This study asked participants of a structured fire education programme for adults how they experienced it and its impact on their feelings about firesetting.

Participants were 15 programme completers, including ten males and five females. All were adults that had attended the programme during their sentence, either in the community or whilst in custody.

Using an inductive thematic analysis this study interpreted the following themes: a supportive and responsive approach, impactful learning materials and methods, a new way of thinking, and picking up the pieces. This study proposes that the intervention may activate change through its powerful methods including fact-based arguments and support from legitimate experts.

Firesetters’ Integrated Responsive Educational Programme (FIRE-P) is a novel example of a specialist structured fire education programme for adult firesetters. This is the first paper to outline its structure and content. Understanding how change occurs in FIRE-P has implications for intervention design and delivery with this client group.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first qualitative study of a structured fire education programme for adults and provides researchers and practitioners with insight into the ingredients of a successful fire education programme.

Psychological research on fire has focussed primarily on its misuse in the form of arson and firesetting, which reflects a tradition in forensic psychology for focussing on risk and pathological behaviour. However, this is inconsistent with the strengths-based approach because it fails to account for positive aspects of fire and law-abiding/ healthy interactions with fire. This study aims to explore the psychology of non-criminalised forms of fire use. It is predicated on a novel, dimensional, conceptualisation of fire-related behaviour – the continuum of fire use (CoFU; Horsley, 2020, 2021).

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 adults who use fire in law-abiding forms. Data were analysed using techniques informed by grounded theory. Steps were taken to ensure reliability and validity, including a Cohen’s Kappa calculation, which indicated an agreement level of 0.8 between two raters.

Four core themes were identified relating to the benefits of fire on psychological well-being, namely, immediate gratification; hope and empowerment; self-concept and emotional security.

Drawing on findings from this study, a theoretical framework of the psychology of non-criminalised fire use is presented. This is a preliminary conceptualisation and more work is needed to address this under-researched topic.

The findings can inform the work of forensic practitioners. They highlight the importance of considering service users' positive interactions with fire, alongside maladaptive/ criminal use. This has implications for the assessment of fire setters, as well as rehabilitative approaches.

It is argued in this paper that a society-wide approach is key to firesetting reduction. More specifically, findings can inform the development and refinement of early intervention programmes, which focus on supporting young people to develop a healthy relationship with fire.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to explore the psychology of non-criminalised forms of fire use. It is predicated on a novel, dimensional, conceptualisation of fire-related behaviour – the continuum of fire use (CoFU; Horsley, 2020, 2021a, 2021b).

Previous qualitative research by Horsley (2020) and Lee (2019) highlighted the importance of self-concept (SC) in understanding fire use. This study, therefore, aims to further investigate the relevance of SC in non-criminalised fire use, with a view towards informing early interventions for firesetting prevention.

In this preliminary study, ten participants engaging in extensive, non-criminalised fire use were interviewed about their fire-related experiences and how this relates to SC. This was analysed using techniques informed by the grounded theory.

Three core categories were identified: control, identity and self-esteem, which provide a preliminary framework for understanding how SC and non-criminalised fire use are inter-related. The core categories relate to the study aim because they are conceptualised as three elements of SC, which are strengthened through interactions with fire. The mechanisms through which the categories relate to fire use and SC are discussed.

Forensic implications are discussed regarding early intervention and prevention. The authors argue that knowledge of non-criminalised fire use could provide a valuable blueprint for healthy fire use and, thus, feed into treatment and intervention. Given that previous research has highlighted the importance of SC in relation to how and why people interact with fire, the authors suggest that it should be given greater emphasis in clinical work with those thought to be at risk of firesetting.

To date, firesetting research has focused primarily on criminalised acts, i.e. arson. This paper adopts a different approach and explores how and why people engage with fire in healthy and adaptive ways.