Both Sides of the Law; Navigating Use of Self in Criminal Justice

• In Event: Looking Inward: A Structural Critique of How Justice Works

Abstract

This presentation will focus on the professional use of self in the criminal justice field. At its core, every professional role involved in the criminal justice system is one of enabling change and being of service. Change a life, change a system, to protect those who have been harmed, enable agency in building a life and a community. Many professionals have personal experience with the system. So how does one navigate the professional side of the system? How much do you share with your clients? How do you know what is clinically relevant? What if you've never learned that term? What if you've been justice-involved, have a history of mental illness or substance misuse? Since its inception, psychotherapy has been deeply engaged in study of the professional self. Who we are is less important than who our client perceives us to be. Self awareness is an essential ingredient to building the clinical relationship. But what happens when professionals are not taught to engage in this reflexive endeavor? Especially when they potentially share a past with their clients? This presentation explores how to navigate ones past while maintaining a stance of service to clients.

Author

• Rebecca Linn-Walton, Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment