Emotional Literacy in Criminal Justice (PDF)

Charlotte Knight is an Associate Researcher at De Montfort University, UK. In
1998 she established the Division of Community and Criminal Justice from which
probation and police training are delivered through under-graduate and
post-graduate degrees in criminology. She previously worked as a probation
officer and her research interests include emotional literacy and diversity in
criminal justice practice.

"In this path-breaking study Charlotte Knight integrates research data and explanatory theories in order to cast fresh light on the operation of emotions in the criminal justice system. She focuses on the ways in which experienced probation practitioners understand and manage their own emotions, as well as those of the offenders for whom they are responsible, and the extent to which the use of 'emotional literacy' may serve to promote change in offenders. This concise and clearly written book is a shining example of the way perceptive scholarship and conscientious research may be combined to illuminate some important consequences that flow from the more subtle aspects of professional work practices. An admirable achievement." - Derek Layder, University of Leicester, UK

"In this study of the emotional literacy of probation officers and probationers, Charlotte Knight skillfully lays out a variety of pathways for innovative practice and service delivery. Through engaging interviews, she describes a significant range of issues related to a heretofore obscure topic of criminal justice attention. Knight gives depth to sentiments that offenders and practitioners alike tend to shake off rather than explore. She provides an information-rich roadmap for exploration. - Russ Immarigeon, Editor, Women and Girls in the Criminal Justice System, Vols. 1 and 2, USA

"In this profound and thought-provoking book, Charlotte Knight reaffirms the critical importance of emotion in working to support processes of personal change. With many well-chosen direct quotations from participants in her original research, her work begins to redress the preoccupations of recent scholarship with thoughts and behaviour and shows that emotional literacy - an awareness of one's own feelings, the feelings of others and how these must be managed for therapeutic benefit is a fundamental skill and personal quality for criminal justice workers. This wise and timely book can be warmly