ABSTRACT
Forensic psychiatry and psychology have grown tremendously over recent years as assessment-focused specialties. A variety of forensic assessment instruments have been developed to help mental health clinicians evaluate legally relevant questions about individuals involved in the civil-, criminal-, or juvenile-justice systems. Many of these instruments improve clinicians’ ability to forecast the likelihood that an individual will behave violently. Increasingly, these instruments are being applied in response to statutes and regulations that require specialized assessments to identify “high-risk” individuals for initiating some form of preventive intervention, or “low-risk” individuals for eschewing (or terminating) such intervention.
