An examination of current practice and new developments in the forensic assessment of offenders

Whatson, Chloe Louise (2016). An examination of current practice and new developments in the forensic assessment of offenders. University of Birmingham. Foren.Psy.D.

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Abstract

Exploring and understanding the practice of accurately assessing offenders is an important area of research for forensic practice and the risk management of offenders. This thesis aims to explore different approaches to offender assessment, specifically their clinical utility in forensic mental health settings. The first chapter, provides an introduction to the importance of accurate offender assessment, and presents current models proposed within the literature. The second chapter, provides a systematic review of historically used approaches in the assessment of risk, and compares their predictive accuracy and clinical utility in relation to a mentally disordered offending population. The third chapter, critically appraises a widely used assessment tool to assess risk within forensic mental health settings, the HCR-20 (Version 3.0; Douglas, Hart, Webster & Belfrage, 2013). The fourth chapter, moves way from specific tools used in current practice and instead explores clinicians current understanding and use of newer concepts in offender assessment (IOW/IOA), through a qualitative research study. Finally, the fifth chapter presents a thorough discussion of the overall content, findings and conclusions of this thesis. Findings have important implications for the practice of assessing and managing offenders effectively.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Foren.Psy.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Foren.Psy.D.

Supervisor(s):