ABSTRACT
The main purposes of psychological assessments within forensic contexts include case formulation, risk assessment, treatment need assessment, potential treatability, and outcome evaluation. Assessments may also contribute to diagnosis-mental illness, personality disorder, or other mental health conditions-and may assist in decision making on such matters as community versus institutional disposal, and mental health versus criminal justice disposal. All these purposes are important and complementary elements in the treatment and management of forensic patients through different levels of security in the safest, most timely, and most cost-effective way.
