A comprehensive examination of the psychometric properties of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised in a Canadian multisite sample of indigenous and non-indigenous offenders – 2018
The present study examined the psychometric properties of Hare Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R; Hare, 2003) scores in a multisite sample of 1,163 federally incarcerated Canadian indigenous and non-indigenous offenders from the Prairie Region of the Correctional Service of Canada. The research
A data science approach to predicting patient aggressive events in a psychiatric hospital [2018]
Highlights• Machine learning was used to optimize modeling of patient aggressive events in a large set of electronic health records in a safety net psychiatric facility. • The best-performing algorithm (penalized generalized linear modeling) achieved an area under the curve = 0.7801. • The
A Prospective Examination of the Predictive Validity of Five Structured Instruments for Inpatient Violence in a Secure Forensic Hospital – 2018
This prospective study investigated the predictive validity of five structured risk/forensic instruments for inpatient violence risk in a secure forensic hospital. Episodes of inpatient violence and the following instruments were each coded from hospital files: Historical Clinical Risk Management 20
A review of factors associated with severe violence in schizophrenia [2018]
Background: There is a modest but consistent association between violence and schizophrenia. The consequences of serious violence could be catastrophic for the victims, as well as the patients themselves and the community. Any knowledge that would help to prevent acts
A systematic PRISMA review of individuals with autism spectrum disorder in secure psychiatric care: prevalence, treatment, risk assessment and other clinical considerations – 2018
Purpose Patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) present with specific assessment, specific difficulties, needs and therapeutic issues and therefore are a challenging group for forensic services. Given the challenge that individuals with ASD present to forensic services, the suggested increase
An Independent Investigation Into the Psychometric Properties of the Adult Scale of Hostility and Aggression (A-SHARP) [2017]
Background: The Adult Scale of Hostility and Aggression (A-SHARP) rating scale assesses the frequency/severity (problem scale) and the reactive-proactive motivation (provocation scale) of aggressive behaviors in adults with intellectual disabilities (ID). Items are assigned to five subscales (Verbal Aggression, Physical
An update and expansion on the role of the Violence Risk Appraisal Guide and Historical Clinical Risk Management‐20 in United States case law [2018]
An individual’s risk for future violent behavior may be considered in various legal contexts, including civil commitment, criminal sentencing, or suitability for parole. Among the assessment tools forensic evaluators use to assess violence risk are the Violence Risk Appraisal Guide
Assessing change in dynamic risk factors in forensic psychiatric inpatients: relationship with psychopathy and recidivism – 2017-10
This study explored change in dynamic risk for violence using the Clinical and Risk Management subscales of the Historical Clinical and Risk Management-20 version 3 (HCR-20 v3) and sought to determine whether change was associated with violent recidivism. The association
Assessing Dynamic Violence Risk in a High-Risk Treated Sample of Violent Offenders [2018]
The present study featured an investigation of the predictive properties of risk and change scores of two violence risk assessment and treatment planning tools—the Violence Risk Scale (VRS) and the Historical, Clinical, Risk–20, Version 2 (HCR-20)—in sample of 178 treated
Assessing Intervention Needs of Juvenile Probationers: An Application of Latent Profile Analysis to a Risk–Need–Responsivity Assessment Model [2018]
The assessment of criminogenic risk is critical in the prediction of future delinquency and the ability to provide appropriate services and interventions for youth offenders. The goal of this study was to determine whether using latent profile analysis (LPA) produced
Assessment of In-Person and Cyber Aggression and Victimization, Substance Use, and Delinquent Behavior During Early Adolescence [2018]
This study evaluated the Problem Behavior Frequency Scale–Adolescent Report (PBFS-AR), a measure designed to assess adolescents’ frequency of victimization, aggression, substance use, and delinquent behavior. Participants were 1,263 students (50% female; 78% African American, 18% Latino) from three urban middle
Assessment of Risk for Seclusion Among Forensic Inpatients: Validation and Modification of the Risk of Administrative Segregation Tool (RAST) [2019]
Seclusion is used in psychiatric care to protect patients and staff or to manage aggression but may have adverse effects. The ability to identify at-risk patients could help reduce seclusion. This study tested the Risk of Administrative Segregation Tool’s (RAST)
Beyond Recidivism: Exploring the Predictive Validity of a Correctional Risk Assessment Tool on Offender Victimization [2017]
A vast body of past research on correctional risk assessment instruments supports their validity in predicting measures of recidivism across diverse offender population samples. Despite similarities in the risk factors for victimization and offending, little is known about whether the
Broken Legs, Clinical Overrides, and Recidivism Risk: An Analysis of Decisions to Adjust Risk Levels With the LS/CMI [2017]
Risk assessment practices have evolved considerably over the past three decades. Structured assessments of recidivism risk allow for the proper identification of criminogenic needs, which in turn, allow decision makers to make informed recommendations regarding criminal justice interventions and measures.
Can we keep it simple? Using the BARR-2002R with a community-based sex offender sample – 2017
The Brief Assessment of Recidivism Risk (BARR-2002R) comprises of six items from the Static-2002R and has been designed for predicting general and violent recidivism among sexual offenders. The present study investigates the ability of the BARR-2002R, Static-2002R, Static-99R, and SORAG
Constituting the ‘sexually violent predator’: Law, forensic psychology, and the adjudication of risk – 2018
Considerable socio-legal scholarship demonstrates law’s constitutive power, and much criminological research has considered the effects of actuarial risk assessment. However, these strands have rarely been brought together to consider how legal risk assessment practices constitute sexual subjects. This article argues
Decision-Making Behaviour under the Mental Health Act 1983 and Its Impact on Mental Health Tribunals: An English Perspective [2018]
In England and Wales, the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA 1983) provides the legal framework which governs decisions made concerning the care and treatment of those suffering from mental disorders, where they may pose a risk to themselves or others.
Development of the Nonverbal Cues of Interpersonal Violence Inventory: Law Enforcement Officers’ Perceptions of Nonverbal Behavior and Violence – 2018-01-20
Across two studies, we investigated nonverbal behaviors perceived to precede imminent interpersonal violence. Study 1 identified the six-factor structure of the Nonverbal Cues of Interpersonal Violence (NCIV) and also examined differences in perceptions of imminent interpersonal violence between law enforcement
Differences between staff groups in perception of risk assessment and risk management of inappropriate sexual behaviour in patients with traumatic brain injury [2018]
This research explored staff perceptions of risk assessment and management of inappropriate sexual behaviour (ISB) displayed in patients following a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). The primary focus was to determine differences in perceptions between qualified (N = 40) and direct care staff
Discrimination and Calibration Properties of the Level of Service Inventory–Ontario Revision in a Correctional Mental Health Sample
We examined the predictive properties of the Level of Service Inventory–Ontario Revision (LSI-OR) in a sample of 604 provincially incarcerated men with mental illness from a correctional mental health facility followed up nearly 2 years after release. Recidivism base rates
Do risk assessment tools help manage and reduce risk of violence and reoffending? A systematic review – 2018
Although it is widely believed that risk assessment tools can help manage risk of violence and offending, it is unclear what evidence exists to support this view. As such, we conducted a systematic review and narrative synthesis. To identify studies,
Do scores on the HCR-20 and FAM predict frequency of self-harm in females within a secure psychiatric hospital? [2018]
The Historical, Clinical, and Risk Management scales (HCR-20) and the Female Additional Manual (FAM) are violence risk assessment tools. This study aimed to examine whether scores on the HCR-20 and FAM are related to frequency of self-harm. HCR-20 Version 3
Does the use of risk assessments in sentences respect the right to due process? A critical analysis of the Wisconsin v. Loomis ruling – 2018
On 13 July 2016, the Supreme Court of Wisconsin published a crucial decision which ruled for the first time ever about the constitutionality of using algorithms in sentencing. The ruling accepted their use, arguing that defendants’ right to due process
Dynamic Risk Assessment of Sexual Offenders: Validity and Dimensional Structure of the Stable-2007 – 2018
In this study, the predictive and incremental validity of the Stable-2007 beyond the Static-99 was evaluated in an updated sample of N = 638 adult male sexual offenders followed-up for an average of M = 8.2 years. Data were collected
Evaluating the utility of ‘strength’ items when assessing the risk of young offenders – 2018-01-15
There is emerging recognition that positive or pro-social characteristics may lessen criminal propensity. There are now several adult and youth forensic instruments that include protective or strength components. Yet evidence supporting the protective capacities of these instruments with youth offending
Evaluating the utility of ‘strength’ items when assessing the risk of young offenders [2018]
There is emerging recognition that positive or pro-social characteristics may lessen criminal propensity. There are now several adult and youth forensic instruments that include protective or strength components. Yet evidence supporting the protective capacities of these instruments with youth offending
Field Inter-Rater Reliability of the Psychopathy Checklist–Revised – 2016-06-01
Strong inter-rater reliability has been established for the Hare Psychopathy Checklist–Revised (PCL-R), specifically by examiners in research contexts. However, there is less support for inter-reliability in applied settings. This study examined archival data that included a sample of sex offenders
Gender and Risk Assessment in Juvenile Offenders: A Meta-Analysis [2017]
Although young males are still the primary perpetrators of juvenile crime, the percentage of girls experiencing criminal justice system contact has risen. To identify effective interventions and address public concerns regarding juvenile crime, scholars and practitioners have assessed recidivism risk
Gender and violence risk assessment in prisons [2018]
Our study examines the association between Historical, Clinical, Risk Management-20: Version 2; Psychopathy Checklist–Revised; and Violence Risk Assessment Guide scores and violence perpetrated during incarceration by male and female inmates. Using a sample of 288 men and 183 women selected
Gender-sensitive Violence Risk Assessment: Predictive Validity of Six Tools in Female Forensic Psychiatric Patients [2019]
Most violence risk assessment tools have been validated predominantly in males. In this multicenter study, the Historical, Clinical, Risk Management–20 (HCR-20), Historical, Clinical, Risk Management–20 Version 3 (HCR-20V3), Female Additional Manual (FAM), Short-Term Assessment of Risk and Treatability (START), Structured
High-Risk Violent Prisoners’ Patterns of Change on Parole on the DRAOR’s Dynamic Risk and Protective Factors [2017]
Few studies have examined change after treatment completion; such investigations can enhance our understanding of how a rehabilitative intervention leads to reduced recidivism. The current study uses growth curve modeling to investigate change in dynamic risk factors in the community,
Identifying patients at risk of inpatient aggression at the time of admission to acute mental health care. What factors should clinicians consider? [2016]
Objective: The aim of this study was to identify, at the time of admission, predictors of aggression in adults admitted to acute mental health care. Method: Adult patients (n = 350) consecutively admitted to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) in
Implementation of the Brøset Violence Checklist on an Acute Psychiatric Unit [2019]
BACKGROUND: Violence on inpatient psychiatric settings has significant consequences for patients and staff. Research is needed to determine if Brøset Violence Checklist (BVC) is an accurate predictor of violence. AIMS: The study aims were to determine the relationship between BVC
Implementing a Violence Risk Screening Protocol in a Civil Psychiatric Setting: Preliminary Results and Clinical Policy Implications
Comprehensive violence risk assessment can require substantial time and resources, which may be challenging for an already strapped public mental health system. Herein, we describe a naturalistic study of the Fordham Risk Screening Tool (“FRST”), a violence risk screening instrument
Indigenous perspectives on violence risk assessment: A thematic analysis [2018]
Violence risk instruments are widely employed with at-risk minority clients in correctional and forensic mental health settings. However, the construction and subsequent validation of such instruments rarely, if at all, incorporate the perceptions, worldviews, life experiences, and belief systems of
Juvenile probation officers’ evaluation of traumatic event exposures and traumatic stress symptoms as responsivity factors in risk assessment and case planning [2018]
Juvenile probation officers (JPOs) are increasingly using risk/needs assessments to evaluate delinquency risk, identify criminogenic needs and specific responsivity factors, and use this information in case planning. Justice-involved youth are exposed to traumatic events and experience traumatic stress symptoms at
Layers of Bias: A Unified Approach for Understanding Problems With Risk Assessment [2018]
Scholars in several fields, including quantitative methodologists, legal scholars, and theoretically oriented criminologists, have launched robust debates about the fairness of quantitative risk assessment. As the Supreme Court considers addressing constitutional questions on the issue, we propose a framework for
Low Risk Offenders Under Probation Supervision: Risk Management and the Risk-Needs-Responsivity Framework [2018]
Community supervision agencies commonly use resource allocation models to identify the amount of monitoring and treatment to provide individuals under supervision. The risk-needs-responsivity model guides these decisions, suggesting the level of supervision should align with one’s risk level, with fewer
Matching Services to Criminogenic Needs Following Comprehensive Risk Assessment Implementation in Juvenile Probation [2018]
One emphasis of juvenile justice reform has been implementation of risk assessment instruments to improve case planning. This study examined the ability of juvenile probation departments to apply the risk-needs-responsivity (RNR) framework into case planning following a comprehensive implementation protocol.
Mentalization and empathy as predictors of violence in schizophrenic patients: Comparison with nonviolent schizophrenic patients, violent controls and nonviolent controls [2018]
Highlights• There are no differences in mentalisation in violent and nonviolent schizophrenics. • Worse mentaliation is related to schizophrenia but not violence in this illness. • Violence in schizophrenics and controls has different predictors. Abstract There are conflicting results concerning risk of violence
Modifying a Risk Assessment Instrument for Youthful Offenders – 2016-07-15
High rates of incarceration in the United States are compounded by high rates of recidivism and prison return. One solution is more accurate identification of individual prisoner risks and needs to promote offender rehabilitation and successful community re-entry; this is
Offender Risk Assessment Practices Vary across Canada – 2018
The dominant Canadian approach to offender rehabilitation, the risk-need-responsivity (RNR) model, requires assessing offenders’ likelihood of recidivism and their criminogenic needs (i.e., risk/need assessments). The current study examines the risk/need assessments routinely used in Canadian corrections and compares their risk
On the Link Between Emotionally Driven Impulsivity and Aggression: Evidence From a Validation Study on the Dutch UPPS-P [2017]
The UPPS-P seems to be a promising instrument for measuring different domains of impulsivity in forensic psychiatric patients. Validation studies of the instrument however, have been conducted only in student groups. In this validation study, three groups completed the Dutch
Popping the cultural bubble of violence risk assessment tools – 2017-07
Violence risk instruments are administered in medico-legal contexts to estimate an individual’s likelihood of future violence. However, their ostensible limitations; in particular their mono-cultural and risk-centric composition, has drawn academic attention. These concerns may facilitate erroneous risk evaluations for certain
Predicting Institutional Aggression in Offenders with Intellectual Disabilities Using the Violence Risk Appraisal Guide – 2016
Background One of the most extensively tested risk assessment instruments in offenders with an intellectual disability (OIDs) is the Violence Risk Appraisal Guide (VRAG). The purpose of this prospective study was to test the ability of this instrument to predict
Predicting Offenders’ Institutional Misconduct and Recidivism: The Utility of Behavioral Ratings by Prison Officers [2018]
Measures of current behavior are rarely incorporated into risk assessment. Therefore, the current study used a behavior rating scale to assess prison officers’ observations of inmates prison behavior and examined the contribution of these ratings for risk assessment. Prison officers
Predicting physically violent misconduct in prison: A comparison of four risk assessment instruments [2018]
Violence in correctional facilities is an important issue for both prisoners and prison staff. Risk assessment instruments have demonstrated their accuracy in predicting the risk of (re) offending and institutional violence in psychiatric settings, but less is known about their
Prediction of Psychiatric Hospitalization, Diagnoses, Arrests, and Violent Behavior Through Scored Drawings and Associations – 2017-07-11
The article presents a completely empirical approach to using drawings and associations as a supplemental tool in forensic psychological assessment. The present system represents a modern alternative to prior theory-driven “projective technique” approaches that have failed to pass scientific scrutiny.
Prediction of Psychiatric Hospitalization, Diagnoses, Arrests, and Violent Behavior Through Scored Drawings and Associations [2017]
The article presents a completely empirical approach to using drawings and associations as a supplemental tool in forensic psychological assessment. The present system represents a modern alternative to prior theory-driven “projective technique” approaches that have failed to pass scientific scrutiny.
Prediction of Violence, Suicide Behaviors and Suicide Ideation in a Sample of Institutionalized Offenders With Schizophrenia and Other Psychosis [2018]
This study examined the predictive validity of the Spanish version of the Suicide Risk Assessment Manual (S-RAMM) and the Historical-Clinical-Risk Management-20 (HCR-20) in a sample of violent offenders with schizophrenia and other psychosis, who had committed violent crimes and had
