Forensic Psychology: Risk Assessment

These flashcards cover key concepts and terminology related to risk assessment in forensic psychology as detailed in lecture notes.

Risk Assessment

A process used to measure how likely an offender is to commit another crime, involving prediction of future criminal acts and management to reduce risk.

Unstructured Clinical Judgment

A method of risk assessment characterized by professional discretion and lack of guidelines, leading to high variability in decision-making.

Actuarial Prediction

A risk assessment method based on statistical associations and empirical risk factors related to specific outcomes, considered more accurate than unstructured clinical judgment.

Structured Professional Judgment

A risk assessment approach that uses a predetermined list of risk factors derived from research to guide decision-making, combining empirical data with professional evaluation.

Static Risk Factors

Risk factors that are historical and unchangeable (e.g., prior criminal history), providing a baseline for predicting future behaviors.

Dynamic Risk Factors

Changeable risk factors that can fluctuate over time (e.g., antisocial attitudes, substance use) and can be targeted for intervention.

Base Rate Problem

The difficulty in making accurate predictions because they depend on the frequency of criminal behavior within a population, influencing false-positive and false-negative rates.

False Positive Rate

The rate at which individuals are incorrectly predicted to reoffend when they do not, illustrating the inaccuracy of some risk assessments.

False Negative Rate

The rate at which individuals are incorrectly predicted not to reoffend when they do, posing risks for public safety.

Preventive Function of Risk Assessment

The critical aim of risk assessment processes; to reduce the likelihood of future crime through management and intervention.