AAFP: Risk Assessment

4 Hours | 4 CEs

This on-demand professional training program on Risk Assessment is presented by Chad Brinkley, PhD, ABPP, in partnership with the American Academy of Forensic Psychology (AAFP).

This presentation provides an overview of risk assessment in the context of forensic and clinical psychology. This program reviews some of the principles common to the assessment of different types of risk (violence, sex offending, suicide), including characteristics of risk, the impact of base rates, types of errors in risk assessment, as well as the difference between risk prediction and risk management.

This program also covers different approaches to risk assessment (actuarial, clinical, structured professional judgement) and identifies some commonly used risk assessment instruments that exemplify these kinds of approaches. We briefly review case law relevant to risk assessment and discuss why knowledge of local statutes is important.

Finally, we review information relevant to conducting risk assessments, including a process for conducting assessments, reducing bias in the assessment process, and communication of results regarding risk assessment in reports/testimony.

This program provides valuable information for various mental health professionals at any stage of their careers. Although the presentation focuses on violence risk assessment, the information covered in the presentation is relevant to the assessment of other kinds of risk, including the risk for sexual offending and the assessment of suicide risk. The information is most relevant to individuals who conduct risk assessments of various kinds, psychologists working in forensic or criminal settings, and psychologists working in inpatient settings with individuals who have been committed for treatment.