A Comparison Of Clinical Judgment And Actuarial Assessment

Risk assessments are an essential component to the criminal justice system because without them jails and prisons could not perform their duties and would not be as efficient. Risk in principle is a fact, yet danger is an issue of perception, how much will society tolerate. People tolerate a lot of risks without noticing the dangers. Risk assessments let us know what is not easily noticed though they still have some blind spots where studies need to be done. The ways that community correction agencies use risk assessments, the elements that are risk assessed, and strengths and weaknesses of most risk assessments will be discussed.

Retribution has been associated with increased punishment, decreased treatment, but not with reduced recidivism (Andrews et al., 1990). Not only has there been no reduction in recidivism, there has also been no increase in deterrence through the use of punitive measures (Cullen & Gendreau, 2000). Deterrence-oriented interventions have actually been shown to increase recidivism by 12%, as demonstrated by Lipsey’s (1992) meta-analysis (as referenced by Cullen & Gendreau, 2000).

Out of the shadows and into the limelight, the once hidden crime of domestic violence has recently emerged within the Australian community as a widespread criminal issue. This abuse of power occurs in a relationship when one partner attempts to physically or psychologically dominate and control the other. Inflicting physical harm upon another human being is undoubtedly a breach of the criminal law, yet the Australian legal system takes little measures to protect the wider community from this type of violence. According to Family Lawyer Richard Ingleby, domestic violence has often been condoned by the legal system due to the fact that assaults occur in the ‘private’ realm of the home where legal measures are regarded as inappropriate, and interventionist. However, by overlooking domestic violence as a criminal offence, does the Australian legal system fail to adequately protect the family unit from this form of violence? Recent studies from the Australian Bureau of Statics have revealed that 23% of women who have ever been married or engaged in a de facto relationship have experienced violence by a partner at some time during the relationship. Due to the secrecy that once surrounded this kind of abuse, victims often feel unable to speak out and seek help, therefore even large surveys cannot provide accurate estimates of the extend of domestic violence within the Australia community (Domestic Violence and Incest Resource Centre, 1998). Despite the high incidence rate of

offenders for intervention strategies. Therefore, offenders' current risk level should be identified prior to making intervention decisions (Andrews, Bonta, et al., 1990). Secondly, higher risk cases require more intensive intervention; brief or

Juvenile delinquency is a strong predictor of adult criminality. Therefore, professionals aiming to reduce overall crime can benefit by seeking preventative and early intervention methods with troubled youth. This article seeks to address the “psychosocial and psychopathological risk factors as predictors of adult criminal outcomes” (Aebi et al., 2013). The design of the study replicates an older longitudinal study performed by Zurich Adolescent Psychology and Psychopathological Study, or ZAPPS. First, the researchers utilized data from the original study to determine which risk factors have the possibility impacting future adult criminal behavior. Next, the coping strategies of offenders are analyzed to determine if poor coping skills attribute to long-term antisocial behavior.

Today, more than 2 million Americans are incarcerated in either a state facility, federal correctional facility or a local installation (Batey,2002). Due to longer sentences, incorporating harsh sentencing guidelines, and mandatory minimum punishments (NeSmith,2015). With each inmate costing taxpayers an average of $30,000 annually. The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 were increased sentences for a broad range of offenses, as well as establishing federal penalties for most murders and a large number of other crimes already subject to state law (Batey,2002). In addition to reducing the discretion of state judicial systems; as well as 85 percent of sentence satisfaction and establishing a mandatory life sentence for those convicted of three serious violent crimes or drug offenses (NeSmith,2015). .

Evidence suggests that we are more punitive when it comes to crimes relating to property and drugs, but not far from the norm when it comes to violent crimes. In the United States there is an unusually high incarceration rate, this is partly because

The effects of intimate partner violence are attenuating and extend far beyond physical scarring. The abuse of woman and children has been researched extensively by Rachel Pain (2014, p. 536) as acts of “terrorism within the home”. If we are to compare the experience of women and children living in violent homes and the act of ‘terrorism’ itself we get a corresponding experience (Pain, 2014, p. 546). The construction of fear, the loss of identity, the ongoing distress of constantly feeling unsafe, isolated from all support networks are the surreal and ongoing daily struggles for domestic violence victims. Living in such horrific conditions has immense physical and psychological effects on those directly exposed or indirectly exposed to such violence. Through this research the links between domestic violence and ill health has been well-established. In an attempt to combat this prevalence element two of It Stops Here (NSW): a “streamlined referral pathways to support victims’ safety and support their recovery” was introduced (NSW Government, 2014, p. 18). Through this second element, there has been a strong focus on being able to better identify risk and supporting victims. From the inquest inquiry into Luke’s death, Coroner Ian Grey stated that "I find that there is no validated risk-assessment tool that can accurately predict whether a parent is likely to commit filicide." (ABC News, 2015). In an attempt to close the gap on such issues in July 2015 It Stops Here (NSW)

This essay will critically analyse the significant changes that have occurred within domestic violence which is viewed as a vital subject within the criminal justice system. It will explore the way that domestic violence has progressively become a concerning issue in the criminal justice system from being relatively acceptable in recent history. In addition to this, the essay will explore legislation changes in relation to domestic violence and how the police have arguably been forced to change their attitudes towards a problem that was once thought of as a private regard. It will critically analyse the theories put forward as to why domestic violence occurs in today’s society. It will explore the weaknesses within the criminal justice system, especially the police in regards to domestic violence, the police previously viewed domestic violence as a matter of which they should not get involved. However as mentioned in the essay, after many reviews within the system, many improvements have been made to help protect the victim.

The statistical analysis on recidivism is constantly expanding. The psychology of criminal conduct (PCC) has a positive and secure promise of an effective program, and is gaining attention for its ability to predict, influence and explain criminal activity. Researchers also deny that the past and future criminal activity can be separated by

Domestic violence is an issue that is impacting the indigenous Australian population (Korff, J. 2015).This should be concerning to Australians so that they may help reduce fatal deaths by domestic violence (Korff, J. 2015).

of the time. They offer their insight on effective corrections and individualizing treatments based on predictors for crime and behavioral knowledge, as well as conclude that recidivism is reduced by rehabilitation.

Domestic and family violence make up nearly 25% among those serious and widespread issue in Australia, with enormous impacts on individual and community from 2003 until now.

When one is bearing in mind the psychometric actuarial methods, one would tend to agree with Robyn Dawes quote in his article “ Clinical versus Actuarial Judgement “. Psychometric methods rely heavily upon the data that is collected for a uniformed decision. Human errors will always be a factor when comparing clinical methods to that of actuarial judgements. Psychometricians depend upon the data to provide validated observations, whereas clinicians may be biased by their individual observations. Humans oftentimes will ignore the data due to their own biased observations, or prior experiences in experiments. This in turn, lowers the reliability of an experiment. Actuarial methods look at all the different combinations of predictors to use for estimating the predictions amongst algorithmic approaches. Predictions will then be weighted according to the validity amongst the measures that determines one’s performance. I feel that less errors occur when dealing with data sets, as compared to dealing with human errors in observations. Humans are less likely to agree upon observations, and make mistakes as compared to algorithms in a computer data sets, that are assessed in the same manner, without human errors. Computers do not feel emotions like humans do, so therefore, they do not use previous experiences to bias their decisions. This in turn results in less error, and more reliability within the measure.

One particular study had the hypothesis that wanted to investigate the “nature of relationship violence perpetrated by female offenders in the Correctional Service of Canada (Slavin-Stewart, Stewart, Gabora, & Allegri, 2014)”. In doing this, the researchers not only wanted to know more about the demographics, risk/need characteristics of women perpetrators, and level of injury but also want to know whether “women offenders’ risk for IPV (intimate partner violence) on the SARA is indicated by similar