Changes in Dynamic Risk and Protective Factors for Violence During Inpatient Forensic Psychiatric Treatment: Predicting Reductions in Postdischarge Community Recidivism

• Published in: Law and human behavior Vol. 39; no. 1; pp. 53 - 61
• Main Authors: De Vries Robbé, Michiel, de Vogel, Vivienne, Douglas, Kevin S., Nijman, Henk L. I.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Educational Publishing Foundation 01.02.2015
• Subjects: Adult; desistance; Female; Forecasting; Forensic Psychiatry; Human; Humans; Inpatients - psychology; Male; Middle Aged; Netherlands; Protective Factors; Recidivism; Risk Assessment; Risk Factors; Treatment; Treatment Effectiveness Evaluation; treatment progress; Violence; Violence - prevention & control; Young Adult; Netherlands; treatment progress; risk assessment; protective factors; desistance; violence
• ISSN: 0147-7307; 1573-661X; 1573-661X
• DOI: 10.1037/lhb0000089

Empirical studies have rarely investigated the association between improvements on dynamic risk and protective factors for violence during forensic psychiatric treatment and reduced recidivism after discharge. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of treatment progress in risk and protective factors on violent recidivism. For a sample of 108 discharged forensic psychiatric patients pre- and posttreatment assessments of risk (HCR-20) and protective factors (SAPROF) were compared. Changes were related to violent recidivism at different follow-up times after discharge. Improvements on risk and protective factors during treatment showed good predictive validity for abstention from violence for short- (1 year) as well as long-term (11 years) follow-up. This study demonstrates the sensitivity of the HCR-20 and the SAPROF to change and shows improvements on dynamic risk and protective factors are associated with lower violent recidivism long after treatment.