Deliberate Firesetting in Australia: An Evidence-based Treatment Approach

Abstract

The deliberately lit bushfires that devastated Victoria in 2009, and several others since, have highlighted the dangerousness of this behaviour in our community. From a security perspective, failing to adequately address the issue of repeat offending among firesetters highlights the risk of future losses and the costs associated with target hardening and arson prevention strategies. lt is estimated that deliberately 1it fires cost the Australian community $1.6 billion annually (Muller, 2009). Until recently, no fire-specific treatment programs existed in Australia to address firesetting, its causes and consequences. This paper describes a new initiative in this area.